


1010 Heros

by Sammywolfgirl



Category: No Straight Roads (Video Game)
Genre: Also mild swearing, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Superheroes/Superpowers, Blood and Injury, Building Collapse, Canon-Typical Violence, F/M, Flashbacks, Like magical girl or power rangers, M/M, Neon j is a disaster man, Original Character(s), Panic Attacks, Slow Burn, general violence, ill add more tags as it goes, not too much but its still there sometimes sooooo im tagging, ships are implied but I’ll add more characters as they appear, technically a human au, technicaly a slowburn only because so much stuff happens in between the romance, this is kinda a sort of show structured thing
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-10
Updated: 2021-02-24
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:29:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 35,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26937418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sammywolfgirl/pseuds/Sammywolfgirl
Summary: When the peaceful Vinyl City starts getting attacked by monsters, it’s up to a new generation of heroes to step up and save the day. By day, they're normal high school students, but whenever danger rears its ugly head, they transform into the robotic superheroes going by the name 1010! Will our heroes be able to defeat the evil plaguing the melodic city while still studying for that physics test? Find out on the next exciting episode of: 1010 Heroes!
Relationships: Eloni/Mayday (No Straight Roads), Neon J./DJ Subatomic Supernova, Rin/Zuke (No Straight Roads)
Comments: 32
Kudos: 125





	1. Trouble in Vinyl City

**Author's Note:**

> Haha so uh this would have been in the oneshot collection but I developed this silly au enough that I figured it’d be better to make it its own thing.  
> So this is a mix of oneshots and also story plots, like a general show of this type. There’s filler and story eposides. Anyhow some basic information: this is a human au but still in the style of nsr, so unnatural skin tones. Subatomic supernova is a professor at the high school (most important characters have a job there but that’ll be brought up later) also the 1010 boys aren’t actually related, but hey I love me the found family trope so they consider themselves brothers anyway.  
> The main cast are teens but like more young adults than children, like junior year age you know?  
> Anyway updates will be spiratic but I hope you’ll enjoy this.  
> This au is essentially my indulging in my love of secret superhero shows

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Vinyl city is a usually peaceful place. But when monster attacks happen and hero’s are needed, a new generation of heroes rises up to protect the innocent from forces of evil.  
> Will our hero’s prevail and still have time to study for their next exam? Find out on the next exciting episode of: 1010 heros!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> we always gotta start somewhere right? also id like to state im still new ish to ao3 so ill be periodicaly fixing things and adding tags (big thank you to my friend Spork for helping me out with that too!)  
> so if theres anything that needs tweeked grammer/spelling/tag wise let me know!  
> anyways enjoy ^-^

Sitting on a shelf was a picture of smiling faces in a frame, but the aura it held wasn’t happy. The room of the two parents had long since been empty, dust lay over everything that was left. The room felt like a time capsule, remembering a moment in the past, a day that never finished. It was filled with grief.  
A purple slime had crawled through the air vents, drawn in by the negativity. It slithered across the floor, up the wall, and onto the shelf, finding the one object that held most of that pain. It greedily clung to the picture, surrounding and consuming it. It grew, and grew, knocking over the other items on the shelf and alerting the attention of only occupant of the house. By the time she ran into the room, the window was broken, and the nasty purple sludge had covered the floor.

[Into plays, no I don’t know what it looks like yet. So imagine some cool power rangers anime sort of thing.]

Rin was bored. He was trying to stay focused on the lecture, something about space and the star's life cycle, but his mind couldn’t stay focused, always wondering about other things. It was mostly the personal that kept his attention drawn, like his plans after school or what he’d get for lunch, though the occasional thought popped into his head about how that cute drummer guy was doing. Hopefully good?  
All thoughts of cute boys and food were abruptly cut short when a device in his pocket buzzed. To anyone else who might have overheard, it would have sounded like a phone going off, but five particular boys in the room knew exactly what it meant. There was a monster attack somewhere in the city. 

Five hands raised up nearly simultaneously, getting the curly haired professors’ attention. He sighed and adjusted his glasses.

“Yes, what is it?” 

“Sir, can we go to the nurses office? My head is spinning!” Rin exclaimed.

“All this talk about space is making me motion sick...” Haym complained.

“My legs are all wobbly!” Zimelu shouted.

“I’ve got...space...sickness!” Purl-Hew said while holding his stomach.

  
“And I’m allergic to space dust!” Eloni tacked onto the end of the train of excuses.

The professor sighed. Had it been any other teacher, their themed excuses likely wouldn’t have worked, but Professor Supernova was an ally of the boys and knew what they were up to, knew of its importance. Still, he did have to keep face.

“Alright, go directly to the nurses’ office, but you will be expected to make up any missed work.”

“Yes sir, thank you, sir!” The five boys said in unison before jumping up and running out of the room. Supernova rolled his eyes before getting back to the lecture.

“Anyhow, let's discuss neutron stars-“

Together the boys ran up to the school roof, quickly pulling out their gadgets. They looked like a standard pocket watch, though a bit bulkier. The insignia in the center of the number 10 wasn’t noticeable until they glowed their respective members' color. Rin looked up at everyone, a glint in his eye.

“Alright, ready boys?” He asks and they all nod. “Alright troops!” He declares, raising their gadgets to the sky. Together they shout, in true anime magical boy fashion-

“1010, Boots to the ground!”

[insert transformation sequence, it’s flashy and cool and the boys all turn into tall robot superheros]

“1010 White!”

“1010 Red!”

“1010 Blue”

“1010 Yellow!”

“1010 Green!”

The robotic heroes posed together, but only for a moment.

“Let's bring the heat!” They yelled and punched the air before launching into the skies with their rocket feet. They weren’t among the clouds long before they got a message on their internal systems, connecting like they were using a radio. 

“Commander, what’s the report?” 1010 White asked, knowing who was on the other end of the line.

“Alright troops, a ghoul-like monster was spotted in the downtown Metro District. Looks to be an item class. Take it out before it causes any more damage!” Neon barked and pulled up the map, quickly sending directions to the boys.

“Sir, yes sir!” The boys shouted in unison over the wind as the call ended and they blasted away to the section.

It wasn’t long before they spotted the beast, I mean, it wasn’t exactly hard to miss. It had the shape of an almost cartoonish ghoul, but it had the distinct features of a monster corrupted by that strange purple slime, it’s form slightly drippy. The few bright colors that were present were melting like an oil leak.

“Egh, this guy is goopier than usual...” 1010 Blue observed the sludge while adjusting his shades.

“It’s another grief related one right? Hope it didn’t spawn from an urn again.” 1010 Yellow commented, causing 1010 Blue to cringe.  
“Don’t...remind me.”

1010 Red pinched a fist into his hand. “Well whatever it is, let’s kick it’s slimy butt!”

“Um...do you think maybe this time we could try to talk it down?” 1010 Green sheepishly offered. White looked at him and shook his head. 

“I hear you, Green, but object monsters can’t be talked down. I mean, it can’t exactly hear us without ears. Besides, this one doesn’t seem too sentient!” White wiggled his fingers around his head at the ears comment, trying to reassure Green a little.

Green nodded, now only looking slightly disappointed. Together the boys descended down to the pavement, though ducking behind fallen debris and sliding into alleys, making sure to stay just out of the monster's sight for now.

“Okay, we need to think of a plan-” White was cut off with Red’s battle cry as he charged right into the monster to punch it. Cue facepalm.

“RED, WE CAN’T JUST-”  
“SHIT!” Red screamed as he was slapped away and into a wall with a crack that might just be his body. Blue sighed and adjusted his shades.  
“Dammit Red-” He reached for a compartment on his back and pulled out a blue colored stick, quickly extending into a full sized staff. “So much for a sneak attack. I’ll draw its attention.The rest of you- try and locate the core!” The remaining boys nodded as 1010 Blue dashed forward into the monsters range. With a few quick swings of his staff, gusts of wind were shot at the monster, causing some of its form to get pulled off. As it turned its attention to the blue robot, more goop melted over the missing spots. 1010 Blue gave a quick ‘come at me’ motion with his free hand and the monster growled, easily keeping all its attention on the robot.

White, Yellow, and Green moved to be out of its line of sight.

“What’s the plan? Can I blow it up?” Yellow asked while grinning eagerly. White looked around, tall buildings, potential civilians trapped, too much wreckage.

“No, no, not yet, there’s too many people around we’d cause more harm than good. But blowing it up could work if we had a smaller, more controlled blast...” White looked over to Green who nodded in understanding.

“I’ll get some mines planted. Yellow can you evacuate anyone nearby?... also maybe check on Red and get him to help, that crack did not sound good. ” Green asked as Yellow gave a salute and blasted off to do just that.  
White looked to Green and pulled out a sword that was stashed in his arm. 

“I’ll keep it off you while you get to work. Signal when you’ve got everything planted!” and with Green’s sharp salute, White blasted towards the ghoulish slime. 

Blue was already doing a good job keeping its attention, but after a lucky hit from the slime, Blue was stuck in place. White screamed out a battle cry and slashed it from behind.

“TAKE THAT, YOU DISCOLORED PILE OF KETCHUP-”  
The creature let out a wail, because of either that sick burn or the slicing, probably both, before turning and giving what looked like a glare to White.

Blue tugged his leg out of the sludge that trapped him and zipped over to Whites side.

“I’m assuming you have a plan?”

“Yeah, yeah, follow my lead!” And with a nod to each other, the two robots continued to draw the monster's attention.

Red had finally pulled himself out of the hole in the wall he was slammed into, just in time for Yellow to land next to him. 

“Hey man, you good?” 

Red gave a thumbs up, so it’s safe to assume nothing got broken! 

“Great! We need to evacuate any remaining civilians, you take the left, I’ll take right.”

“Got it.” Red nodded and they both flew off to do just that. Luckily, most people had already run off so the few that remained were civilians stuck under rubble or trapped with no exit. 1010 Red and 1010 Yellow did their part to make sure the area was clear, and once Red was sure everyone was safely out of the area he looked to Yellow.

“All clear!” Yellow gave two thumbs up and looked over to Green.

“You’re all clean, Green!”

1010 Green, when given the signal, nodded in confirmation and put his hands over a compartment on his legs little discs with a green LED on the top popped out. He held them between each of his fingers before tossing them about. They covered the pavement and made a soft beep, signaling they were active. Thanks or maybe not thanks to their dark grey color, it was difficult to spot them on the dark pavement.

“The floor is hot!” Green flew up and signalled to White. The other two took to the skies as well, not wanting to be on the ground when the things went off.

White had rolled out of the way of a strike when the signal came though, he grinned and nodded to Blue before flying back.

“Hey slime breath! Betcha can’t catch me!” White taunted, sticking out his tongue and promptly screamed a little as the sludge roared and charged at him and Blue, scrambling to the side at the last possible second. The monster was unable to stop its momentum, slipping and sliding right into Green’s minefield. What followed were several small explosions that gave off a green colored smoke, loudly drowning out any cry of pain the beast made.

When the smoke cleared, the slime had been almost completely blasted away, leaving only a small bubble that was trying desperately to secrete more of the goo, no doubt to protect itself. It had a marble-like finish that constantly moved. It was the core.

White quickly uncovered his ears and snatched it, calling out to Red

“Red!” He pulled his arm back and threw the orb at him. “Batter up!”

1010 Red smiled, finally getting to wreck something, and whipped out a buzzsaw from his arm, easily slicing the bubble in half when it collided with the weapon.

There was a quiet sound of shattering glass. 

The leftover goop of the monster started to evaporate as the members landed, Green stepping up to the remains. He leaned down and picked up what had inside the bubble, scanning it quickly. 

It was a broken picture of a family, two fathers and their daughter. 

But thanks to Red’s attack, the frame was sliced into two and the picture ripped. Green sighed, guilt starting to bubble up.

“I really wish we didn’t have to break these in order to defeat the monsters...”

Blue put a comforting hand on the green robot’s shoulder, looking away awkwardly. “I’m sure we’ll figure out how later. But for now this...is what we have.” 

There was the sound of panicked footsteps off to the side and the boys up from the unfortunate wreckage, a girl. The girl from the photo, no doubt, but all grown up.

“Ah! E-excuse me! That’s mine. That’s my- oh...” She came to a stop when she saw it broken in half, face falling. Green smiled at her apologetically as she slowly took it from his hands.

“I’m very sorry miss, it was the only way to...“

The woman sighed. “It’s...alright, I understand.” She held the two pictures together, looking at the smiling faces. “I-I miss them... but maybe this is a sign I should move on...they wouldn’t be happy with me hanging on so tightly to the past.” She looked over at the battle damaged streets. “And considering it spawned a monster...” She sighed, closing her eyes for a moment before looking up and smiling at the robotic heroes. 

“Thank you, 1010.” 

The robots gave either a kind smile, an enthusiastic wave, or in Yellow’s case, finger guns as a response. White glanced away at the sounds of vehicles approaching, likely the damage response team showing up, which meant they had to go.

“Well, stay safe, ma’am. A damage response team is coming soon, talk to them about what happened and I’m sure you won’t get into any trouble. And...on behalf of all of us…”

He set a gentle hand on her shoulder, crouching slightly to meet her level.

“We’re...sorry, for your loss. It’s not easy to lose people that close to you. But that just means you’re strong, stronger than you know, for getting through it.”

He straightened up, and realized just how close those cars were, quickly offering her a salute and spinning around.

“1010, let’s head back to base!” And with a sound of affirmation from the team, they all all blasted to the skies.

The girl held her torn photo and genuinely smiled.

Back at the school, the de-transformed boys were sitting at a lunch table. There were a few other students talking about what happened, various conversations about the 1010 heroes defeating a monster!

It took a lot not to look proud in public. The boys were chatting about nothing in particular when two familiar faces approached, well more like one ran over and slammed her hands on the table with enough enthusiasm to dent it.

“Hey-HEY HEY, did you guys hear? 1010 defeated another monster in Metro today! Man I wish I could have seen it! I heard Green used some minefield move, that sounds so cool!!”

It was Mayday, their energetic classmate, exclaimed while bouncing in place, her eyes sparkling with excitement. Zuke strode up next to her, giving the group a small wave which Rin eagerly returned.

“I don’t know May, I think we’re lucky the monster didn’t attack anywhere near the school. It’s less dangerous then…”

“Yeah, I know, but I think it would have been worth it if only to catch a glimpse of them!” Mayday squealed with excitement, and Zuke merely rolled his eyes with a smile, shaking his head at his friend's antics.

“She’s been like this since she heard the news.”

“I mean she’s right though, they are pretty cool-” Haym grinned, nearly avoiding a shove in the arm from Zimelu.

Rin spoke up to cover them- “Well uh, anyway, uh...what are you two up to?” 

Mayday, without missing a beat,quickly answered, almost stumbling over her words.

“Oh!! We’re going to practice for a bit! There’s this indie festival coming up and I really want Zuke and I to play there, so we need to be REALLY good!”

“That sounds fun...” Eloni smiled, finding Mayday’s shouting less annoying and more endearing. Zuke had a small smile on his face as he nodded to confirm, deciding then spoke up.

“We need to practice playing for an audience though, you guys wanna watch?” Each boy agreed in their own ways, a nod, or an enthused clap, though Rin’s choice was smacking himself in order to not blush at the offer.

“I-er-YEAH!?”

Soon enough, the group of hooligan teenagers were heading off to the band room, talking and laughing together.

It was a good day today.

[fade to black, and credits roll]

“Next time on 1010 heros: we’ve seen the team, we’ve seen them work together. But how did we get here? And how did they form? Well before 1010 it was just neon j, and that man isn’t one to give up a fight. But what will he do when he can no longer fight alone? Tune in next time to find out on. 1010 heros!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Special thanks to my pal Spork for the beta read and helping edit!!!


	2. The Cyborg and the White Knight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neon j is a veteran hero who swore to protect vinyl city with everything he had. But he knows he won’t be able to fight alone with his aging self. But there’s a new generation of heroes out there. He won’t work alone for long.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey hey told you there’d be more. Hopefully the next few updates won’t take as long as this one. But who knows wirh my schedule, motivation, and also collage.

A tape recorder clicks.

“Log date XX/XX/20XX. Those...those new heroes have once again defeated my monster. Unfortunate, but this shows I need to rethink my plans. As such, I’ve decided to look into when these new heroes first appeared. Unfortunately, since I don’t know their true identities...yet, I can only go so far. But I don’t intend on giving up. Those idiotic do-gooders will fall one day, and my plan will seek fruition.” The recording ends, the distorted voice cutting off with a click. Glancing over the monster battles, long fingers moved through files, looking for a specific record. The fingers found what they were looking for, the last battle Neon J had fought alone. Might as well review it once again.

Maybe this time there will be something useful stored in the archive.

[insert into here]

It was a lovely day in Vinyl City. The sky was blue, nice and clear. Everyone lived in peace as they did their daily commute. Of course, there’s the occasional disturbance, no city is perfect, but usually, it’s nothing the proper authorities can’t handle. 

That is, until a bigass multicolored slime monster appeared and started clawing chunks out of nearby buildings.

“MWAHAHAHH-” Cackling behind it was a woman with a overcoat and wings, she was sitting on a lamp post with a sharp tooth grin. “Yes, YES! Go my monster! Make these pathetic humans FEAR YOU!” She laughed maniacally, it echoed as civilians screamed and ran for cover.

“MWAHAH-AAAAH-!??” Her laughter was cut short as a sharp red needle grazed her shoulder. She squawked and ducked, out of the way of the rest of the shots. She popped up a second later and glared in the direction the attack came from. 

“You again! You just don’t know when to quit, do ya, old man?!” She screamed, now even more enraged.

Standing confidently on a device that was hovering high above the ground, was a cybernetic man. His cape flowed behind him dramatically as the fluff of it accented his screen head, a sonar spinning calmly in the center. It blipped as it pinpointed the location of the two monsters.A department on his mount opened and he pulled out a yellow-colored weapon. It looked similar to a pistol, but had a floating circle around the front. He pointed the barrel at them and crouched, finally looking ready for a fight.

“As long as the flag of rhythm stands, I will fight to protect my city from monsters like you!” He declared, raising a fist to the sky. 

The winged woman sneered, twisting around on her monster’s back.

“Then l’ll burn this blasted city down with you in it! GOODRA! ATTACK!” She screamed, pointing a clawed finger at the cyborg. The slime monster did as told with a growl, and started launching flaming attacks towards Neon J. 

The cyborg maneuvered his flying machine away to dodge attacks, but with the monster’s many heads, he had too many close calls for comfort, even a bit of his cape going alight before he snuffed it out. But Neon wouldn’t give up. He _had_ to protect the city.

No one else would.

He fired his pistol, shooting yellow glowing and sparking shots at the beast. The areas hit gave off a dull yellow glow, and the monster roared in pain, but before anything else could take effect, it’s icky goo dripped over the impact points. It was like it was absorbing the damage.

But Neon continued to fire. _Shoot. Dodge. Shoot. Dodge. Dodge. Shoot. Miss. No. No no-wait-MOVE!_

Too late.

His weapons factory fell and fell, the fiery blast leaving smoke to flow off of it and throwing Neon. He crashed through a nearby building’s lower floor, sending glass everywhere. His factory collided through as well, luckily landing on the same floor but unluckily sending more glass and sliding a distance away. If he could crawl over, he could pull out another weapon. _Crawl, go, go MOVE-_ he dragged himself an inch closer on his arms-but the slime dragon was already charging up another shot.

_This couldn’t be it._

_HE HAS TO PROTECT THE CITY-_

He covered his screen with an arm as the monster launched a projectile attack. _He couldn’t even dodge._

“WATCH OUT!” 

A silver haired teenager jumped in front of him, wielding a baseball bat that connected hard with the projectile, sending it back to its maker with a loud crack.

The flaming ball of slime hit one of the hydra monster’s heads, causing it to splatter and fizz away. The remaining two heads blinked at the now empty spot in surprise, shocked for a moment. But a moment was all that was needed.

Neon tilted his screen up to see blue eyes looking back down at him. This kid looked to be in high school at least, maybe early college at most. 

“Hey, are you alright?” He asked, offering a hand to the downed cyborg. Neon’s screen blipped in an imitation of blinking as he took the offered hand.

“I will be, thank you for the assist soldier, but you should not be out on the battlefield, it’s dangerous-“ His lecture was cut off as the goodra let out a furious roar, shock wearing off quickly. Before Neon could make a call for retreat, the teen grabbed him by the arm.

“Yeah, yeah, danger, I could die, I know- but we gotta move it!” The fair-haired teen dragged the cyborg along quickly and away from the shattered window, out of range of the goodra’s attack. As they ran, Neon J grabbed the handle of his factory. The jets still functioned, so the machine hovered just above the ground as he tugged it along and out the doors of the building.

They were dumped onto the street, and had barely passed the corner when a flaming ball of slime wizzed passed them as the Goodra roared and stomped in pain. Neon immediately knelt, shoving Rin’s head down too in order to 1. Get out of the line of fire and 2. check if his factory was damaged. Thankfully, it wasn’t too badly broken that it wouldn’t function, but he couldn’t immediately create any new weapons thanks to a smoking hole from the previous attack.

The teen peeked up and glanced over the machine, then at Neon, a confident glint in his eye.

“I-I can buy you some time to get that working.” 

Neon J looked up incredulously and was about to protest, vocalizer already starting to warm up when he saw that look. This kid knew of the danger, he might...die, and yet he was still willing to put himself at risk. 

It reminded him of someone he knew in the past.

He found himself speaking before he realized it.

“Why soldier? Why would you put yourself in harm’s way?” 

The teen gave a confident grin before putting his free arm across his chest. 

“Because Vinyl City is my home, and I won’t let anyone get hurt or die because of some monster attack. Not if I can help it.” 

Neon recognized that confidence this kid had. He recognized it as something he once had- maybe even still does, considering what he is out doing now. He knew he wouldn’t be able to convince this kid to run off. To go home.

So.

He nodded.

“What’s your name, soldier?” 

“Rin, sir!”

“Rin. Can you keep the Goodra’s attention off of me while I get this old bird functioning again? I just need her to spawn a certain weapon. Shouldn’t take long.” 

Rin smiled, wide, finally, a chance to change the world, and ran back out behind the corner. Neon quickly got to work rebooting the factory.

“Hey! HEY, HEY!! Look over here you two-faced, oversized, sack of...sack of scales and someone’s tossed out flambe recipe!!” Rin yelled, cupping his mouth with a free hand and skidding to a stop in front of the beast, but instead of drawing the dragon's attention someone else glowered down at him.

“Well, look who’s decided to crawl out the gutter and be a hero!” The winged monster cackled, landing on a street light nearby. Rin held his bat close ready to strike. 

“And who are you? Some kind of feral bat? It’s not Halloween anymore, honey!”

The woman huffed at this, though not really helping the bat comparison since she decided to hang upside down now, wings outstretched.

“Name’s Inky Blue, you twinkish little snowflake. Better remember the name - because I’m gonna make sure everyone remembers it when I burn down this dumb city!” She let out a wicked laugh as she made a lunge for the teen, but Rin was faster and smacked her away with the bat

She skidded across the pavement and clambered to her feet, growling as she held the side of her face, dark ink dripping over where she was struck.

“Why you little- I’LL OBLITERATE YOU!!!” She screeched as she prepared to attack, claws outstretched and reaching for Rin.

A yellow missile crashed into her and sent her flying to her monster’s feet with a crash and a trail of inky goop. Rin looked back, starstruck, and there stood Neon J, a rocket launcher hoisted over his shoulder.

By now the monster had turned its attention to the attackers, a low growl erupting from its throat as it prepared another attack. Neon quickly reloaded, grabbing Rin’s arm at the same time and shoving him back.

“Duck and cover soldier!” He ordered.

Rin had barely covered his head, ducking behind J as he fired another rocket at the monster, hitting it in its chest. For a few moments nothing happened, and Inky sat up at the stiff monster’s feet, a low cackle coming from her throat.

“AHAHA!!!! YOU THINK MY GOODRA’D BE BESTED BY-”

Slime bits that once were the goodra exploded absolutely everywhere, covering poor Inky and the street in smoking blobs of sludge. Neon, unfortunately, was not spared from this, a glob of it hit the side of his screen and he sighed electronically. Rin, somehow, didn’t catch any of it, then again he was hiding tucked behind Neon so it’s not as much of a stretch as you’d think.

A beat.

“...GOD-DAMMIT!!!!” Inky screeched, flailing her arms and splattering slime around her. “Yoooouuuu prissy buttfaces might have won this time!! BUT I’LL BE BACK!!! Mark my words, this city’ll BURN!!! BURN, YOU HEAR ME!!!?” She scrambled to her feet, flapping her wings haphazardly as she tried to gain air and fly off. Neon stepped forward had he a face it would have glared down at her, but she stuck her tongue out and managed to lift off, leaving the cyborg and the silver teen alone with smoking piles of sludge.

Looks like their job here was mostly done, but Neon knew better. He continued walking forward, leaving Rin behind as he looked for it. No time to purify. He put his rocket launcher down and pulled a sword out from his belt, running quickly towards the center of what used to be the hydra-like monster once he spied it.

The core.

It was already secreting more of the corruptive slime to reform, but Neon wouldn’t let it. He quickly stabbed at it, destroying it. The slime that had been trying to reform around it melted away into nothing.

Rin finally dared to look when he heard the hissing of the slime melting away, eyes peering around and up to the cyborg, standing stoically and staring down at the destroyed core. 

Neon knelt down and picked up a half of the item inside.

It was a plush dragon, old and worn from years of being loved. 

Neon sighed again, only tearing himself away when he heard footsteps approach. Rin had moved to stand next to him. The boy looked confused at the plushie.

Ah.

He didn’t know.

“It’s this monster’s core, soldier.” Neon explained. “Each one has it. Only way to defeat the beast is to destroy the core. Or purify it, but that’s much harder in most cases.” 

“Oh…” Rin nodded at the explanation, looking away from the stuffed animal as he digested it quickly. “I-MISTER???” Rin exclaimed, jumping to catch Neon as the cyborg keeled over panting. “HOLY SH-are you alright?”

“I’m- I’m alright, soldier. Just tired.” Rin was going to argue that he looked more than just a little tired, but had a feeling that wouldn’t help any. So he decided to do something that would.

“Let me help you back to...well, wherever you usually stay. It’s the least I can do for you, sir! Especially after all that.”

Neon was too tired to argue, so with a nod he let himself be slung over Rin’s shoulder, quickly making their way out of the battle scene as sirens blared and emergency personnel approached, stopping only to pick up the factory to drag behind them.

  
  


Now, when Neon J had met this kid, he thought it was gonna be a one time thing. The last thing he expected was for Rin to somewhat consistently return to his home for a visit, usually just checking in to make sure the cyborg was alright. Monsters still attacked occasionally, but thankfully nothing as powerful as the hydra monster showed up in the following weeks.

Checking in turned into casual visits, and casual visits turned into overnight stays, Rin running from one thing in about his home life to another. And..within a few weeks, Rin had started to consider Neon’s place a second home. The cyborg did ask why he likes to stay over so much, but when Rin looked to the side, clearly uncomfortable and unsure how to answer correctly, Neon just waved it off. That was something he could find out about later.

Rin was a curious teen, as anyone would be, asking about Neon J and his hero work. The cyborg in question was happy to recount stories of the past and the older heroes who used to keep the city safe, though as the danger lightened up all those heroes weren’t needed anymore and retired.

“But there are monsters again, why haven’t they come back?” Rin had asked one night after a long story-telling session, a mug of tea in his hands. Neon simply shook his head.

“We’re all older now, and likely they made new lives for themselves. There's many reasons why they can’t or won’t return to the line of duty now.” 

“Then...what are we supposed to do? Someone has to protect the city! You can’t do it by yourself forever…”

Neon J was quiet for a moment, trying to come up with a satisfying response he didn’t have, but there was no time to continue when his radar blipped. He froze. This was a larger one.

There was no way he could fight it off alone.

Rin, by now, knew what that sound meant and stood up, setting his mug down.

“Sir, with all due respect, you can’t go out and fight alone. Let me help you, please! I want to protect my city! I know I don’t have any fancy gadgets or powers like most heros, but I don’t care. I’ll fight with everything I’ve got!”

Neon J scanned the white-haired teen across from him, still silent. This was a kid, a mere child, still in high school. He didn’t want to force him to fight.

But this city needed new heroes.

And this kid was determined to help.

He didn’t want to make the same mistake again.

But...he had prepared everything he could for this. So, with a long sigh he stood up.

“Alright. You’ve got spirit, kid. Reminds me of myself. And if you’re anything like myself then there’s no way you’ll take no for an answer. Come with me then, and quickly.” And with a gesture, he turned and headed out of the dining room, Rin following close behind. Mugs left untouched on the table.

They travelled down a hallway and stopped in front of a painting. Rin tilted his head in slight confusion as Neon reached over and moved the painting out of the way, revealing a keypad. He typed in a code and Rin jumped back as he heard the hiss of hydraulics and the wall splitting open into an elevator shaft. The cyborg stepped inside, Rin following close behind, starstruck yet again.

As the elevator descended, he glanced around, taking it all in. This had to be under the house, but it looked so...normal from the outside. How did he keep this hidden? The elevator reached its destination before he could verbally ask, revealing what Rin could only describe as a secret underground lab-base-thingy.

Various electronics lined the shelves, blinking as they charged. A large table with a radar at its center sat in the middle, what looked like a map of the entire Vinyl City was displayed on it. A glowing dot indicated where exactly the monster attack was. 

Neon j had an entire base ready for protecting the city.

Rin spun around, taking it all in, unsure as to why he was surprised as Neon J was a freaking superhero after all! Maybe it’s the sheer amount of coolness associated with having an underground laboratory. 

Neon went ahead, letting Rin look around for a minute before opening a box at one end of a table. Inside were five near identified devices, the only difference being the color of their back lights. At the center was a white one, Neon picked it up.

He held the watch-like device in his hand. He thought back to his previous plan. A new generation of heroes to protect the city.

...but he had miscalculated, and last time went so horribly wrong.

He wouldn’t let that happen again.

He prayed to whatever god that would listen that he wouldn’t repeat his mistakes as he turned back to Rin. The teen had since started walking over to the cyborg, mouth open and looking as though he was about to ask several questions that Neon would have to sit down and answer in depth later.

“Rin, I need you to listen carefully.” He said, cutting off whatever Rin was about to ask as he grabbed his shoulder and leaned down to meet the boy. 

“I-...o-okay, sir?” Rin looked up at him, concerned.  
Neon sighed, choosing his next words carefully. “Going...out there, putting yourself out there and fighting monsters is a dangerous job, one I wouldn’t ask someone to do lightly. But I’ve seen you fight, and I know you’re not one who’s going to back down easily. The least I can do is make sure you’re as well equipped as possible.” Saying this, he held out the silver device.

The 10 on the center glowed a soft white as it approached Rin.

He stared at it for a moment, in awe, then...slowly, carefully reached out to take it. Neon put a hand over Rin’s for a moment, pressing the device into it. 

“I need you to promise me, if you’re ever overwhelmed, you’ll let me know. Immediately. I don’t want you to feel forced into this role. Please, promise me you’ll tell me if it gets too much. There’s no shame in admitting defeat.” 

The cyborg didn’t have a face, but Rin could tell he had a pleading expression, maybe almost...tearful. He wasn’t sure what this old hero had been through in the past...maybe he didn’t want to know. But Rin nodded.

“I promise.”

Neon J removed his hands, breathing out a sigh of relief, and leaving the device in Rin’s hands. A passing of responsibility from the old generation to the new. A weight lifted from his shoulders.

Rin turned it over a few times, it’s weight feeling comfortable, but not overbearing.

“...so how does it work?” 

Neon let go of him, and walked to the side, pulling his cape off it’s hook. He glanced back at Rin as he spoke.

“I’ll be going with you during this first mission, better to help you figure out what abilities you’ll have.” He swung the cape over his shoulders and walked calmly towards the area that stored the flying weapons factory, beckoning Rin to follow him, which he promptly did!

“Sir! How do I use this? What does it do?” Rin held it up and poked at it, squinting and trying to figure it out.

Neon j looked back and nodded to the watch-like thingamajig. “That device is one of my own creation, part of a set really. It turns its user into an android superhero, and it uses the magic naturally available to humans to keep the user safe from corruption. Plus added with androids being more durable and having multiple abilities, it seemed to be the most ideal setup for a new generation of young heroes.” He explained casually. “Not to mention, you Iphone-addicted youngsters might fancy it a lot more.”

Now Rin had several more questions at that,and a snipe to shoot at J for the last bit, but the beeping of the radar table told him they’d all have to wait, so instead he asked what he thought was the most important one he had.

“How do I activate it?”

“Simple, hold up the device and say, ‘Boots to the ground!” Neon flicked a switch on the factory, it rumbled and hovered to life.

Rin looked down at the device in his hand, confident glint in his eye returning. The little 10 on it glowing slightly brighter.

“Boots to the ground!”

  
  


Inky smiled to herself as her newest monster trashed the city, not nearly as big as the goodra but nobody could argue that another dragon-like monster wasn’t strong. It shot lasers off as it screeched, pedestrians running away screaming in terror.

It was _exhilarating._

Inky cackled as the beast ran amuck, enjoying the fire and the havoc, in typical supervillain fashion, only for the high to be splintered away as a gunshot echoed through the square. _Son of a b-_

“Back for another round old timer!?” Inky laughed as Neon arrived with his factory. He was holding the yellow gun again, scope turning in sync with the diodes blinking under the thing. He looked determined as he aimed at her.

“I tooold you I’d be back!!! Where’s your little helper, huh, did he run off after he carried your metal ass home?”

Neon didn’t answer. 

Inky growled, getting annoyed by his silence. “FINE, THEN! Keep your secrets! Momszilla, GET HIM!” She pointed her clawed hands again as the hulking beast turned its attention to Neon J, growling but a slash and a stomp later, the beast’s eye and cheek started to bleed out slime as a shoeprint appeared on its snout, a blitz of white damaging it. Inky gasped and the beast roared in pain as a new figure appeared next to J.

“WHAT TH-”

The android’s eyes flashed silver and white, glowing ominously. The black uniform covered him, it’s white lights accenting it. His cheeks and hair gave off that same white glow as his eyes, and the sword in both metallic hands was sure to give off the MOST fuck off vibes as he hovered beside Neon J, boots obviously propelling him into the air.

“Oh, just GREAT! Who’s this twink!?” Inky yelled, wings stretching out in surprise. The android smirked and made a peace sign with one hand, as you do.

“Names White. And I’m not going to sit around and let you destroy Vinyl City!” 

Neon J tilted his screen to the bot...had he had a proper face it would have been proud.

“Alright troops. Deploy!”

“Sir, yes sir!”

And with that, 1010 White and Neon J dived into the battle together, each calling out their own battle cry as Inky screeched and the dragon roared.

[fade to black roll credits!]

“Next time on 1010 heros! The next generation of heroes are here, but a team isn’t a team with only one member. Neon J and Rin must search for more members, and a spunky redhead jock gets their attention. What happens next? Tune in next time to find out on.

1010 Heroes!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A huge thank you to my friend Spork for the beta read and editing help!!!


	3. Red Dead Punk Head

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A team isn’t a team with only one member, so Rin and Neon j must scope out more potential candidates, and a spunky red teen gets their attention.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Collage is getting tough but hey new part. Hoping to work on the next one soon. Thanks for your patience ^_^
> 
> Fun fact: the cleaner bots are named Sven and Marcie. They’re a butler and a maid respectively. Don’t know if that’ll ever come up so figured I’d say it here

Click.

“Log date XX/XX/20XX. Reviewing White’s first appearance has yielded nothing of interest, so I’ve decided to move onto other team members. Red was the first team member to appear, so I shall start with him, ugh, I remember this battle. Not the best monster available but it still proved to challenge one of the members on their own…hm.” 

The audio clicks off as the recording ends. The recording device clinks down onto the desk, and the screen flickers to life. Those long fingers once again pull up the file, surely something in here will give those fingers the information they need.

[Intro plays whoop boop scoot]

Rin kicked open the door, announcing his arrival with a sing-song-y voice.

“Captain J! I’m here!”

Neon J practically fell out of his seat with a yelp, his radar blipping rapidly in surprise as it jolted and registered Rin’s presence. 

“Knocking exists soldier! Consider using it!”

“Noted, cap! Maybe next time!” Rin grinned as he shrugged off his backpack and basically tossed it onto the table, unzipping it as he began to rifle through the various folders and school items tucked inside. Neon tilted his screen as the teen pulled out a few books and pens, notebooks, mostly. It wasn’t until everything was spread on the table haphazardly that Neon spoke up.

“Fine, I’ll bite, what’s all this for, soldier?” 

“I’m very glad you asked, sir!” Rin smiled, if he kept it up he’d have a pair of sore cheeks, as he grabbed at one of the hardcover books. “You said you were making a new hero team, meaning I’ve got to work with these people, so, I took the liberty of making you a list of potential candidates! Since I would need to at least get along a little with them I decided to pick out people from my school, specifically those around my grade level. I have to know a decent amount about everyone, seeing as how I’m _the_ class representative.” As he rambled, a hint of pride in his voice as he tacked on little detail at the end, he cracked open the yearbook. It was clear to see that he had used a pencil to lightly circle various pictures and made notes in the margins of various pros and cons they could have.

Neon’s radar blipped once as he slowly nodded, impressed with his tenacity, but with everything he knew about the guy he should have expected something like this. Still, the cyborg didn’t know any of these kids and the thought of adding them to the team on Rin's word alone was...he looked up from scanning the pages. 

“Soldier, I’m proud of you and your initiative, but...I’m not sure if you’re aware that I don’t...know any of these people. How can I be sure they’ll be fit for hero work?” 

Rin beamed, but his smile faltered as the new question came to life, a question he seemed to have anticipated as he finally sat down and flicked open a notebook. “I thought you’d say that, so that’s why I also made this!” He held up a page that had two slightly-off center columns, each labelled either “People I Know Well” and “People I Don’t Know”.

“I’ll try to learn what I can about anyone who potentially is a fit, and when we narrow down the list, you can personally go and talk to them! So like, we’re both in agreement.” Rin explained, holding the notebook with one hand and gesturing to the lists with the other.

Neon was floored.

“You’ve...really thought this all out. Good work, soldier. What candidates do you have already?” The cyborg asked, finally taking a seat again as Rin started to ramble, pushing the yearbook over to him and happily listing off names of those he thought would fit from his notebook. 

There were some theatre kids, a few smart kids, musicians, the like, though what got Neon J’s attention was one of the jocks. 

“Oh, oh! This guy is Zim, full name, Zimelu. He’s on like, every sports team ever, though he’s kind of a hot head from what I’ve heard. I’d need to try and figure out whether that’s a defense mechanism or if he’s genuinely like that.” Rin supposed, placing a finger on his chin. 

Neon looked harder at the grainy photo in the yearbook. Something in him made him curious about this kid, maybe he just wanted to know how he was on every sports team. Surely that kind of feat would take a toll on a human. Or maybe it was something else.

“If he’s on sports teams, then does that mean he has practice? Perhaps I can speak to him before or after one of those?” Rin nodded in confirmation and procured another notebook from somewhere _(how many of those did he have?)._ This one seemed to be a planner of sorts as he flipped through the pages looking for the date.

“Oh, got it! There’s a soccer practice after school tomorrow til 5. From what I’ve heard, Zimelu usually stays a lot longer than that after it’s over, so you’ll be able to talk to him then. I think.”

Neon J thought about his upcoming schedule...then remembered he was basically a serial hermit at this point so yeah, it’s safe to say he was free. 

“Alright then. You’ll have to go with me though, I doubt they’d let me in if I just went alone.”

“EHhaha-” Rin let out a stressed laugh. “You’d be surprised! But sure, if anyone asks, your like...my cool cyborg uncle from out of state.”

That seemed fair, and so the plan was set. 

  
  


The next day Neon J found himself on a soccer field outside of Cadence Academy. He tried to make himself look inconspicuous, what with wearing a casual red turtleneck sweater and leggings, but you can only do so much when you got a radar screen for a head. How nobody was recognizing him still baffled him, _surely it was some sort of Clark Kent thing?_ But Rin had gone ahead and was doing...something, he’d said that it was related to student council business, _god, when was the last time J had heard someone say that?_ So, the poor cyborg was on his own. 

In any case, it didn’t take long to find who he was looking for. The red-haired angsty teen was kicking a soccer ball into a goal at the other side of the field on his own. It did seem to be the end of practice, and most kids were going home. Neon briefly wondered where Zimelu’s parents were, but hey, he had a job, so he jogged over towards the guy. He waved and called over. 

“You got a good kick, son. Do you usually stay late during practice?”

The red boy glanced over; attention got, and glare painted on his face. He was wearing a no sleeve Jersey with the number 10 on the back, huh, a coincidence? And sports shorts with dirty, well-worn tennis shoes. Currently, he was dribbling the balls out of the goal, likely lining them up for another round of kicks.

“Yeah? What of it? My old man is busy, and I’d rather not sit around on my lazy ass.” He spat, sending a ball up to his knees and kicking it to keep it in the air. 

Neon J decided not to press on the family part, there was a time for that and it sure as hell wasn’t now, he only idly wondered how busy this father was to leave his kid so long and so close to sunset. But he did have a goal in mind. So, putting a hand to his chest, he decided to start his speech he prepared in advance. Can’t go around parading that he’s scouting new heroes, but he can do something similar.

“You see, I’m a representative for a college sports team, I’m looking for particularly gifted individuals who have the qualities we like to see in-“ 

“Oh, drop it, old man. You’re not a scouting agent.” Zimelu rolled his eyes as he harshly punted another soccer ball into the net. “What are you really here for?”

Neon J sputtered for a good moment, his screen buzzing for a moment. The last thing he was expecting was for his act to be seen through _THAT_ fast, he thought he was a better actor than this. But he was caught off guard and the teen was waiting for an answer, so an answer he gave. 

“A-ahem, alright fine, I’m not a scouting agent. But I am looking for a team.” Neon placed a hand on his chest and raised his palm, in a mockup of a witness swearing to tell the truth and only the truth. “...Rin had good things to say about you, so I wanted to know more.” Zimelu groaned, and Neon’s hand fell a little.

“Ugh! Him? That stuck up student rep who’s so full of himself? No thanks, if he’s involved in it, I want no part.” Now, Neon was confused, radar pinging slightly, but it quickly turned into frustration. He took a stronger stance in front of the shorter guy. He had known Rin for over a month now and that kid was anything but full of himself, but he kept his cool, and crossed his arms. 

“And what makes you say that, son?”

“First of all? Don’t call me son. I don’t know you and you don’t know me, that makes it fuckin’ weird.” Zim kicked up another soccer ball. “Second, he always says how he “speaks for the class” and how he “wants to do what’s best for our grade”, bullshit, he doesn’t speak for me. And everybody knows he can’t do anything meaningful, he’s just a kid like the rest of us. He needs to get off his high horse and admit that!” As he finished his rant, he kicked the ball into the net, much harder. Neon was mildly surprised the net didn’t snap at the force, but his focus was on the teen, and so Neon J huffed like a grumpy parent. 

“I’d beg to differ. In the time I’ve known him, he’s been very selfless. He takes his position seriously I think-come to think of it, have you ever even talked to Rin?”

“Does it matter? I know enough about him to know we wouldn’t get along.” So that was a resounding _“no.”_ If Neon had any, he’d be pulling hairs, but he could see this conversation wasn’t going anywhere...so with a sigh he decided to change the subject.

“Let’s just agree to disagree. How long have you been playing?” Neon J tilted his screen to the soccer goal. Zimelu kicked another ball into the net.

“As long as I can remember? I’m pretty good at this one though.” He shrugged. “That a good enough answer for ya...”

“Really? I used to play soccer back in my day.” Neon hadn’t, actually, but he knew enough on how to play, and he was trying to hook Zim in with something he liked.

Zimelu took the bait.

“Oh yeah? I’d like to see you try, geezer!” He laughed and set his foot on one of the balls, almost daring him to come over. And come over Neon did, jogging over to the goal and kicked over one of the balls resting inside.

“I won’t go down easy, soldier!”

  
  


Neon J had never wished he didn’t still have human lungs more than he did at this moment.

Zimelu clearly didn’t hold back, and Neon wasn’t about to half ass this, so he gave it his all, shooting and dribbling and panting as he played as hard as he could, yet inevitably by the end of it, the sun was starting to set and J was simply exhausted. His lungs burned as he huffed and puffed, hands resting on his knees as he tried to rest for a fleeting moment. Zimelu laughed and picked up a soccer ball, running over to him and clapping the cyborg on the back.

“Okay I’ll admit it, you’re pretty solid for an old guy. Haven’t had that much fun in a while.” And, with a grin, he held out his free hand. “Names Zimelu, but just call me Zim, got it?” Neon looked up, radar pinging, and after a few puffs of air he took the extended hand and shook it.

“Neon J.”

“Well then, guess I’ll see you around, J-Man.” Zim smiled, for the first time, Neon thinks, and waved before walking away.

“...” That kid had potential.

  
  


Not too long after did Rin come jogging over to the exhausted cyborg. The moon peeked out from behind a cloud, had they really been out this late?

“So? How’d it go? Judging by hard you’re panting, bad, right?” Rin crouched over him, nervously biting his nail as he waited in anticipation for an answer.

“Actually-” Neon took a big breath. “I think...I think he just might-work. Bu-but you’ve gotta get along with him first.” Rin was taken aback.

“Get along with him? Well, that shouldn’t be too hard right? I mean, we can bond over-” 

“Actually, it might be a bit tricky considering he...he hates your guts.” 

“...what.”

Neon just kind of fell over after that, muttering a quiet “Iiii think I’m going to lay down...now...” Rin jumped at first as J collapsed, but then just, quietly patted him on the back, briefly wondering how hard those two were playing for his mentor to end up _this_ exhausted, before his thoughts drifted back to Zim. _The guy hates his guts? What did he do? ...how does he fix it?_

  
  


A few days had passed, yet Rin wasn’t having much luck, more so because of the fact that Zim avoided him like the plague and always found any excuse to leave any conversation the white teen tried to start up rather than any fault in Rin himself.

The kid looked just about to cry once he reported this to Neon, wringing his hands and swearing he’ll keep trying, only for Neon to sigh and quickly reassure him that it was perfectly fine, there are a hundred more potential candidates anyway, best not to get hung up on this one. Hell, the cyborg was already looking for another potential hero, yearbook in his hands snapping shut as Rin had jogged up to his side.

“Again, Rin, please, it’s fine, not every kid is going to click with you.” 

Rin sniffed, and nodded, looking just a little less dejected. “Alright...I just. Didn’t wanna disappoint you...” 

Neon had to stifle a chuckle, reaching out and patting Rin’s head gently for a second. “Don’t worry son, you could never disappoint me. Besides, it sounds as though the issue here lies with his willingness to work with you, not the other way around. Good work, soldier.” 

“I-thank you, sir!! I-oh, oh god, sorry, I’ve gotta go, I’ll be late!” Rin brightened, then panicked, running past Neon and grabbing his half-zipped up bag, scrambling out of the mansion at light speed. Neon let him go, slightly concerned about, well. Rin. He brushed it off quickly, the kid seemed...fine, at least now... _oh god. Oh god did you just-_

Neon stared at his still-outstretched palm that had, seconds ago, been lightly restiting on Rin’s head gently, and his radar pinged, as whatever pride had filled it for a second melted away into slight distress. _No...you. Shouldn’t get attached...it was just a small pat. It doesn’t mean anything! ...right? It shouldn’t. It’s fine. It’s fine, everything’s fine..._

He brought down the hand and lifted the other, surprised at the weight in it until he realized- 

“Oh-Rin, you left-…" Ah, he was long gone. “...” 

Neon sighed, and thumbed through the yearbook in his hands again, back to the page that displayed Zimelu’s name and accomplishments. Even if the kid had the guts, if he couldn’t get along with his teammates, it wasn’t worth the hassle. A dysfunctional team is a weak team after all. 

Still...he thought he had something with Zimelu. The kid could have been a good fit, but something...something was missing, and if he didn’t get along with Rin, the team would suffer as a result. So, he sighed, setting the yearbook down on the table. Rin could collect it later. 

As he exited the elevator and gave a small nod to the butler bot inside, Neon walked up to the container holding the gadgets. He stared down at it for a second, thoughts racing by too fast to catch. 

_Perhaps...perhaps he..._

Without thinking, he snapped open the container and pulled out the red device. The 10 in the center gave off a dull red glow. Neon J does not believe in chance, nor luck, but...something...something made him certain about Zimelu. He supposes he’s just stubborn, he can’t be right about everything, as sad as that is to him.

“...” He swallowed his feelings and reached out to put the device back, only to freeze in place as a beeping came from the map table. He tugged his arm up and spun on his heel, shoving the device into his sweater pocket as he saw the telltale signs of a monster appearing on the radar. No time to lament a loss in potentials, he put all his energy into deciphering where the attack was located. 

“That’s...Cast Tech. That district’s been getting hit hard recently, hmm...alright, looks to be an item class, not too strong but you should never underestimate these beasts...” he mumbled mostly to himself, swiping across the city expertly as he waited for Rin to pick up the signal. Luckily, Neon didn’t have to deliberate long, but he had his work cut out for himself, gathering intel was a quick and not-so-easy task.

“Hmmmm...” It’s likely he wouldn’t need to be out and fighting this alongside White this time, but he still could assist in evacuation. So, with no further reason to delay, he snatched the remote that could call his factory, slung the cape across his shoulders and ran out to meet up with Rin.

  
  


The monster was a nasty imp, goop on its body dripping and sticking to everything it touched, unwilling to let go as it howled and scratched at the rapidly decaying ground. Steam hissed up from where the acid touched, corroding and destroying everything in its path.

Most people were smart enough not to go near it, but that didn’t stop the already unsteady walls of the museum from collapsing and trapping hapless citizens in the rubble. White crash-landed onto the ground, sending a shockwave that made the imp scramble back as he unsheathed his sword and pointed it at the goo monster’s snout. 

“That’s quite enough trouble-making for you! 1010 White is here to put an end to this!” White declared and smiled, waiting for the thing to charge at him or something. Instead, the imp stared at the newcomer. It blinked, then quickly stuck it’s tongue out and skittered away.

“Wh-HEY!” White lowered the sword and sprinted after it, more annoyed than anything at the monster for not taking him up on the offer of getting sliced to bits by his blade. The thing seemed more of a nuisance than anything at this point anyway, White was sure he could handle it on his own, _just. Have to catch it! Hup-_

Neon helped a family get out from a cornered off area, carefully lifting a toddler up to their mother’s arms with a quick wish of goodwill before jumping down and scanning about for any other trapped victims, when he noticed it. A hissing noise, as some of the goo twisted and wriggled, merging together into miniature versions of the imp. That...couldn't be good.

He quickly sent White this new information, snatching a fallen plank of wood to knock away any new imps from the family. Only once they had escaped and were heading towards the safe area did he start moving to where White was fighting, can’t risk any more civilians getting hurt.

This creature already showed one hidden ability, what else could it do? White would need backup. His footsteps slowed down as he heard what he could only call a fierce battle cry. Neon swung his head in the direction only to witness Zimelu, of all people, wielding a lead pipe that cut through an imp with precision.

The teen stood guard over two children, 4 and 6 it looks like, clutching each other in fear of the monsters. Neon started forward, determined to help, but...Zimelu was doing an astounding job at holding them back. With another scream he swung at an imp that leaped at him, knocking it into a wall with a wet splat.

Neon decided then and there that this kid had to be on the team. This was what he was missing before. That determination, to save someone, to help someone less then yourself. He saw it in himself, and he saw it in Rin. 

His thoughts immediately picked up, plans forming at the speed of light, the world around him fading for a moment. He could try and talk to him before Rin, figure out why he didn’t like the other teen, maybe find a way for them to get along? He c-

“HEEELP!!!!”

A child screamed, Neon snapped back into the present, and Zimelu straightened up. One of the imp’s remains had corroded a nearby stack of rubble that was being held back only by a few weak pipes. They hung menacingly over the kids, little rocks falling already.

Zim’s eyes went wide and he jumped over the rubble, shoving the kids out of the way, “MOVE-RUN!!!” He screamed, and tried to follow...but...he wasn’t fast enough to move himself.

The pipes broke. The corroded rubble started to fall. Neon froze. 

Everything seemed as if it was in slow motion, the shadow of the oncoming debris covering Zim’s face as he stared up in horror, Neon’s outstretched arm too far away to help, the kid’s screams seemed to go silent.

Something creeped up at the corners of Neon’s memory.

_A team of kids trying desperately to free their comrade from fallen rubble, unaware of the corruptive slime monsters creeping closer and closer and CLOSER AND CLOSER UNTIL-_

**_no_ **

**_no no no_ **

**_no this can’t be happening_ **

**_not again_ **

**_he promised he wouldnt let it happen again_ **

**_no_ **

**_It can't_ **

**_He won’t. He won’t let it happen._ **

**_Not on his watch._ **

**Not if he can do something about it.**

He was at the pile of rubble, his hands were clawing, tearing at the debris, _please, he can’t let it happen again_ , he tossed a brick aside, _please son,_ his gloves were ripped, dust covered everything, _come on, you’re okay,_ radar pinging frantically, **_a faint sound of muffled groaning._ **

**_A sign of life._ **

He sped up his pace, fingers digging and digging and tugging and pulling at the rocks, until he was able to see the bloodied teen. It looked bad, he looked…

 _He won’t last long. No… no he wouldn’t make it_ , even if Neon carried him to a hospital himself, _he’s been hurt badly he wouldn’t...no...not again, please son, please hold on...I can fix this. I...I have to please...p l_ ~~**_e_ ** **_a s e_ ** ~~

Neon stared at the kid, time...seemed so slow. Everything seemed weightless. Until red light got his attention, and he remembered.

He reached to his pocket, the device glowed brightly in his hand.

“I…”

 _This was his only chance to sa_ ~~_ve them, don't fail them._ ~~

“...Zimelu, son can you hear me?” He tried not to let the desperation slip into his voice. Zim groaned, slowly lifting his head towards Neon. A rock had embedded itself into his head. He shifted in the rubble.

“...J-Man...what are...y-you...doin’ here?” He whispered, trying to make out Neon’s screen through the dust and the blood dripping into his eyes. He would offer a look of surprise but everything hurt too much.

“Saving you.” Neon gently took ahold of Zim’s free hand, minding any cuts or bruises as best he could, and carefully tucked the device into his fist. Zimelu made a quiet noise of protest, but Neon hushed him.

“Listen, kid, this is your only chance to survive this, so shut up.” He didn’t mean to sound as mean as he did, but it got the injured teens attention, so he continued. “You need to activate this, I’ll explain more later, but hold it tightly, and say ‘boots to the ground.’ Do you understand?” 

Neon kept his hand covering Zim’s til the latter nodded slowly, vision going dark as he mumbled “...Boots to... _the groun..d...”_

For a moment all was quiet,

Then a bright red light erupted around the area

  
  


White regretted thinking this was going to be an easy fight. First, the imp won’t slow down, then it starts multiplying, and now several of them have merged together and solidified into a stone gargoyle monster that his sword couldn’t make a dent in and neither could his fists, trust him he’s tried! Aaand to make matters worse, Neon had suddenly gone radio silent. 

So,1010 White was left on his own to battle a near unbeatable foe. 

“FU-” He hopped to the side, barely scraping past the beast as it charged at him, spinning around on his heel, trying to think of another plan. A ping echoed about in his head, and he dove out of the way as a red blur suddenly collided a fist to the rock-solid gargoyle, causing its face to crack and splinter. 

“HAAA!” The newcomer jumped back, and White blinked, almost not believing his eyes. The android in front of him stood tall, fist crackling with energy as his red eyes turned downwards to where White was sitting, winded. The red motif and the stylish mohawk certainly made the guy stand out as dust settled around him. His hand reached down, offered to White, a sharp-toothed grin on his face. 

“Sup. Hope I didn’t keep you waiting.” 

White had several questions, but really they could wait as he grabbed the hand and let himself be tugged back to his feet. The two robots turned towards the gargoyle as Neon’s factory flew in overhead. _So that’s what happened._ Neon had found a new member. 

“The monster made itself rock, my sword can’t break it. Got anything to help?” White shouted up at Neon, who nodded towards the new member. 

“Oh yes, he does. Soldier Red, weapons deploy!” And on that command, two red buzzsaws clicked out on the back of Red’s hands. His grin only widened as he bounced on his heels from excitement.

“Oh, hell yeah-this is awesome!” Red started to check them out, and White couldn’t help but give a small smile, first fight excitement, he knew that all too well. It was almost infectious, and he readied his sword again, just in case.

“Well, get in there, Red!!” He shouted and swung a free arm at the monster, smile wide. 

Red, sufficiently encouraged, charged at the monster at full speed with a battle cry and a powerful punch. The sawblade sank into the rock satisfyingly, up and out as smooth as butter. It was easily sliced in half, cracking and clattering to the ground while exposing the slimy core. 

White wasted no time, running up and swiping his blade through the core as it hissed and bubbled and melted away, revealing a torn bubblegum wrapper, a message written neatly inside as it floated to the ground.

Red slammed his boots into the ground and laughed, as White crouched and picked up the pieces, holding them together in an attempt to read what they said before Neon drifted downwards and spoke up commandingly, to get their attention.

“Troops. Rendezvous back at base, we have something very important to discuss.” Neon said, acting as though someone had died with how grave he sounded. White and Red briefly glanced at each other, before White shrugged and took off, leaving Red on the museum floor. 

“HEY!!! AT LEAST GIMMIE A CRASH COURSE IN HOW THESE THINGS WORK BEFORE YOU FLY OFF WITHOUT ME!!”

A significant while later, both robots landed, and with that landing their robotic features faded slightly dramatically what with all the magical-girl-anime transformations packed into these things. Rin shook his head and cracked open his eyes, only for them to grow wide with excitement once he saw who he was working with.

“Zimelu? Dude! Glad to have you on the team, man!” Rin smiled, offering a hand, but Zimelu took a step back, holding his hands up and looking very _very_ surprised. 

“Woah, woah, woah wait- _YOU'RE 1010 WHITE?_?? But you- you’re so-“ He gawked at Rin, then turned to Neon, then back to Rin, who’s face was less excited than it was a few minutes ago. Glaring at Rin, Zim pointed at Neon. “Is this why you defended him so much?” 

The red teen looked like he was having a crushing realization but was too surprised to really let it actually crush him. If Neon had a face he’d surely be looking so smug...though maybe not, because he spoke so seriously it almost drained Rin of any joy he’d previously had.

“Yes, partly, though that isn’t the important issue I need to speak on right now. No, I don’t want to hear it, I have to say this.” Neon put a hand on Zimelu’s shoulder and looked at him dead on, the protest that had been forming on his lips escaping him just as fast as it had formed. 

“Had the situation been better I would have given this spiel before giving you the device...but I suppose not everything can go as planned.” He lightly chuckled but was dead serious in milliseconds. “A hero’s job isn’t going to be easy, there will be trials and it will be dangerous, if you don’t want to be involved I understand- “ 

“You’re not talking me out of this old man.” Zimelu interrupted, batting away Neon’s hand and grinning at him. “I got to fight a real monster and win, and I get to save people too? I would have agreed anyway! I’ll do whatever it takes to help keep people safe.” He paused, looked at Rin, and grumbled. “And if it means being friendly with that self-righteous prick then so be it! I’ve been on worse teams.”

“Excuse me what? Self-righteous???” Rin mumbled, slightly outraged; though he was for the most part, ignored as Neon patted Zim’s shoulder with a chuckle. 

“Alright, alright, but promise me you’ll let me know if it gets to be too much, there’s no shame in backing out.” Zim fell silent and nodded, so Neon stepped back and clapped his hands behind his back. 

“First things first! You two need to talk things out. There’s been some clear miscommunication about what both of you think of each other. That will not stand if you are going to be on a team together. Teammates must be able to get along and work together if they want to be most effective.”

Zimelu immediately groaned, rolling his eyes, but he knew what Neon was saying had some truth to it, so he glared over at Rin and crossed his arms. “Okay, I guess we’re doing this.” He grumbled, to which Rin nodded, the latter holding his hands together nervously.

“So. I don’t like you; I don’t like how you go around saying you speak for the whole class when it always feels like I’m ignored. Makes me think you’re some stuck-up dick...though I guess I misjudged you since you’re like, also 1010 White and that guy is _super_ cool...so uh, truce?” Zim stuck out a hand for a shake. Rin blinked. _Wait, really-it was that easy?_

“I- well, I have several questions on how you even got that impression, though uh...they can wait for later. Sure, truce!” He shook Zimelu’s hand, smiling brightly at him before his expression changed to one of confusion. “Though I would like to know why and how I kept missing you? I thought every classmate knew where to email me issues they had?” 

“... I...didn’t know you had that.” Zimelu tilted his head, looking to the ground awkwardly as Rin had a miniature crisis. 

“Well! Let’s worry about that later!” Neon finally spoke up, grabbing both boys by their shoulders and breaking them up. “Let’s introduce you to the cleaner bots since you’ll be visiting the house more now. Rin, would you like to do the honors?” 

Rin snapped out of his daze and bounced on his feet, grabbing onto Zimelu’s arm and tugging him out of Neon’s grip. “What - OH!! Come on, Zim!! You’re gonna love Marcie and Sven!!” Rin started to drag him towards the elevator, much to the chagrin of the Zimelu attached to him via arm linking. 

Neon watched them both step into the elevator, Rin smiling widely and rattling on about something or other he’d show Zim and the other rolling his eyes but listening close, and let out a relieved sigh. Things would work themselves out, he was sure of it. 

He was just glad Zimelu was okay. 

_[Fade to black...roll credits]_

“Next time on 1010 Heroes: our team slowly is growing! But there’s still more to come. How will Neon J be able to win over the clever blue chess master and top scoring student? And will he be able to bring in backup in time to help the team? Find out on the next exciting episode of 1010 Heroes!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thank you to my friend spork for editing and beta read help!


	4. Blue Queens Gambet

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Neon j tries to find a new blue member of 1010, but he has the worst luck, when it all relies on a chess match can neon j prevail in the end? Find out on this exciting episode of...  
> 1010 heros!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you again for your continued patience! I’m trying to have a very loose schedule of updating once a month.  
> It’s not much but hey it’s something right?  
> Anyway hope you enjoy ^_^

Once again, a sharp click and a low, scrambled voice cut through the dark.

“Log date XX/XX/20XX. So far my research into trying to find some weakness in 1010’s links has been very fruitless, and frankly frustrating. I don’t enjoy revisiting previous failures. So, to hopefully motivate myself, I’ve taken to watching the first appearance of the blue team member, which also happens to be the closest we’ve gotten to defeating the heros when they were new. Frankly, the fact that such a... poorly...thought out monster nearly worked I’m unsure whether to find amusing or disappointing.”

There's a click and the rustling of clothing as yet another tape is placed into the cassette player.

[into plays whoop whoop]

It was a nice spring Sunday. Zimelu stared up in slight intimidation at the door to the mansion, no matter how much he’d been visiting it always seemed larger than life. Eh, whatever he was probably just not used to it yet. Better than staying home at least. 

So, he knocked on the door.

A sweet smile greeted him as Marcie, one of the cleaner bots, cracked the door open and welcomed him.

“Ah! Mr. Zimelu. Good morning! There’s breakfast being served currently, you’re welcome to help yourself!” She said happily and swung the rest of the door open, letting Zim step in.

“Awesome! I’m starving, thanks Marcie!” He grinned at her and Neon J was sitting at the table with a half eaten plate of eggs and toast in front of him. He looked up as Zimelu walked in, his expression, had he a face, one of slight surprise.

“Ah, good morning Zimelu, foods still warm, help yourself to a plate.” Zim nodded at him, reaching forward and doing just that before plopping down unceremoniously next to Neon and taking THE biggest bite out of a piece of toast the cyborg had ever had the privilege to witness.

Rin peeked out from the hall, wearing a baggy shirt and sweatpants and hair messy as if he’d just woke up. Zimelu shoved a fork full of eggs into his mouth.

“You look like shit.”

“OH-uh. Hey Zim, I...just woke up. Didn’t know you’d be here this early...” he mumbled quietly, a tired smile on his face as he went to get his own plate of food. Zimelu tilted his head.

“Wait, you _just_ woke up? What, do you like, sleep here or something?”

“...sometimes.” Rin answered, though quietly with a shrug. Zim blinked for a second confused, before shrugging his shoulders and finishing off the toast dramatically.

“Eh, whatever, I’m not one to judge.”

The kitchen had gone quiet, the attitude in it slightly awkward now as Rin picked at his eggs and Zim obliterated the ones he had. Neon had picked up a newspaper and was glossing over it as if he was trying to ignore the two boys in the kitchen, but Rin suddenly jumped, eyes lighting up.

“Oh! I was gonna talk about the list!” He shouted pushing his chair out and dashing out of the kitchen, Neon looked up expectantly.

“The list?” Zimelu sat up, spreading his hands in a confused gesture only to be acknowledged with-

“The list!!” No further explanation. Zimelu waited a beat before looking at Neon incredulously, only for the cyborg to shrug and look back to his newspaper.

“Ah right, the list! It’s very important! And totally not something little old Zimelu should know about!” Zim huffed, picking up his fork and stabbing a stray egg with it.

The stomping noises of Rin’s feet could be heard from the floor above, and Zim took the time to look around. Neon hadn’t picked up his fork ever since the red boy had showed up, odd…

“Hey, J, you gonna-” He started, pointing to the cyborg in question’s plate before he metaphorically short-circuited trying to figure out how a man with a radar for a head could even eat in the first p-

“Yes, soldier?” Neon spoke up, screen tilting his way.

“...UH. NEVERMIND.” 

Luckily, Neon couldn’t press him further as Rin returned triumphantly, slapping a notebook down on the table. He scrambled back into his seat and flipped through it’s pages, bright smile on his face.

“I swear you have a secret stash of notebooks somewhere.” Zim remarked as he shook his head and took another bite out of the half-eaten toast he’d stolen off Rin’s plate.

“I’m going to ignore that jab and explain the List™!” Rin clapped his hands together cheerily, before his expression flickered to a cold steely rage. “Unless you don’t want me to explain the List™, Zim.”

The kitchen went silent. Zim suddenly felt a very uncharacteristic puddle of anxiety start to pool in his stomach as a trickle of sweat travelled down his forehead.

“....uh….no, no. Explain the List™.”

The room immediately brightened.

“Okay! So, it’s basically just a catalogue of potential new team members. I got a list of people I think could work, I want you to look over it first though, since we’re all gonna be teammates!” Rin flipped to the page he was looking for, turning over the book to where Zim could see.

“Psh. That’s it? Why all the hype then?” Zim reached out and traced over where his picture was displayed, Rin’s messy scribbles and notes almost marring his face.

“I’ll have you know this is a _highly_ detailed and _extensive_ noted manuscript. I’m proud of it!” Rin protested.

“It just looks like you stalked a bunch of people.”

“I-AUGH, come on man, this is all public information!!!” Rin pushed the book down onto Zim’s hands, which made the latter laugh.

“Yeah, yeah, I know, I’m just giving you a hard time, dude.” He took ahold of the notebook and turned it back over, looking over the names. _Dash, Timmy, Celine, Kyanne, Yiruk….Robot. That kid was always just a little weird._ Zim bit his tongue, most of the people Rin had marked as potential candidates were people he didn’t know, or got into a fight with at some point. Though one name gave him pause.

“Isn’t Purl-Hew that straight A teacher’s pet, suck-up nerd?”

“Yeah him! He’s super smart so he’s gotta be a good fit right?” Rin smiles, though it looks a little stressed. Zimelu shrugged.

“I guess so, we need at least _one_ intelligent person on this team.”

“WH-HEYY-” Rin snatched the notebook back, starting to stick his tongue out at Zim only for the red kid to shrug again and put his arms casually behind his back.

“Hey, I didn’t throw _just_ you under the bus this time! I’m not the sharpest avocado in the can crusher either! But...yeah, Purl’s good. He’s chill, got partnered with him for a science project once. He wasn’t like a jerk so I guess he’s alright.”

Neon traded out his newspaper for the notebook as Rin passed it to him, pointing out the blue teen in question. Well, he certainly fit the part of “the nerd.” Big round glasses, slightly messy curly hair that looked unbrushed, a hurried, tired look about him. Neon tsk’d, he had a good feeling about this one.

“Alright, if you’re both in agreement, I’ll try and talk to him. Know where I can find this Purl-Hew?”

“Oh yeah!” Rin clapped again, bouncing in his seat. “He’s usually at the public library on the weekends. Your best bet is finding him there!” Rin smiled, trying to be helpful as Zim eyed the table still full of food. Neon nodded and stood, picking up his plate to finish eating elsewhere.

“Alright, thank you very much Rin. Your research is invaluable as always. I’ll head out in a bit.” Rin beamed, and Neon walked off, leaving the two boys at the table. Zim glanced over at Rin, window-shopping for more potential breakfast delayed slightly.

“So uh, if that’s all you needed me for I guess I should go?”

“Wait no, no not yet! I gotta discuss something very VERY important with you!” Rin looked up from his notebook and pointed at Zim dramatically. The red teen simply stared him down the pointer finger.

“....yuh, okay... and what would that be?”

Rin’s serious, dramatic face broke out into one of glee and slight malicious intent.

  
  


Neon walked back into the kitchen to see Zimelu and a still undressed Rin sitting together over a notebook, though it looked more like Rin holding Zimelu hostage with his arm around Zim’s neck and the notebook pulled up in front of them.

“So-so when you attack the monster with the buzzsaw, you smirk and say ‘they never SAW that coming!” Rin spouted off the horrid pun with the pride of someone who still thinks puns are good, as Zimelu groaned and a little bit more of his soul evaporated.

“Rin, god,why do I have to have catchphrases? Can’t I just kick ass and take names?”

Rin let go of Zim for a second, once again holding up a finger dramatically as Zim twitched as if he wanted to bolt.

“Absolutely not! Catchphrases are part of the job, man! It’s the presentation, the drama! The heroics that make superheroes work!”

“You sound like a grade-A nerd.”

“I wear the title with pride, brother! Now, which one do you like more, ‘what’s all the BUZZ about’ or ‘are you RED-dy for this!’”

“I’m RED-dy to snap your neck.”

“RED-dy it is!”

Neon felt the regret flowing off Zimelu even from the distance he was at, the red teen leaning forward and groaning into his hands as Rin wrote down his terrible pun quickly.

“Ohhoo! Perfect! We only have 60 more to go through!!!” Rin clapped, eager to keep this up until the end of time.

Neon chuckled a little to himself, the two were getting along! It looks as though they would be perfectly fine without supervision for the time being, so he spoke up briefly to say “I’m heading out, Rin has my number, call if you need anything..” and promptly turned on his heel, much to the chagrin of Zimelu.

“Taaake meee with youuuuuu…”

  
  


Thankfully, Rin’s research was proved correct as Neon had just entered the public library when he immediately spotted none other than the blue teen himself sitting at one of the tables.

Now as easy as it would have been to walk up and say “Hi!” right there, Neon wasn’t about to interrupt a kid during their study session. He remembers all too well how annoying it was back in his younger years when people would come up and stare over your shoulder. So, he opted instead to grab a book and sit a few tables away, just far enough that nobody would think he’s watching the kid...or at least he hoped. 

But he decided not to focus on that, and instead he opened the book he’d picked up, an epic tale about wizards fighting dragons. He started to read, occasionally peeking out from between the pages at Purl.

The story proved to entirely engross him, how long had it been since he’d allowed himself to indulge himself in some silly, casual fantasy, he’d forgotten. And thus, he only looked up from the book once the library’s front door swung shut, that iconic blue head of hair distorted through the glass. Neon internally cursed himself for getting so distracted, shot to his feet and the receptionist’s desk, all too invested in it’s story to just leave it here now.

He returned to the house looking defeated, though he cheered up significantly as he spotted the two teens still sitting at the table. Zimelu had his face pressed into his hands, groaning in distress as the maid bot Marcie lightly patted him on the back. The somehow _still_ undressed Rin paused whatever pun related tangent he was on to beam up at the cyborg.

“Oh! Welcome back, Cap! How’d it go?” Rin asked, shoving aside the humongous amount of free loose leaf papers that had been spread across the table to make room for Neon.

“Badly, I’m afraid. I wasn’t able to talk to him, he was busy and I got distracted. I’ll have to try again.” Neon explained as he slumped over the table.

“Well, never fear, I’m sure you’ll catch him next time! He studies at the school library too! I’m sure you can catch him then.” Rin offered, pulling the yearbook out from under the pile and flipping through it to find any other option.

“...perhaps. Would he be there now?”

“I-actually, yeah, probably! I heard him talking about how he doesn’t really like the public library because he says people are too loud in there...so…”

“Alright, thank you, Rin. ”Neon perked up again, maybe there was another chance he could get this over with before the weekend was over, but Zimelu interrupted, grabbing onto Neon’s arm tightly.

“DEAR MOTHER OF GOD, DON’T-PLEASE DON’T LET HIM LECTURE ME ABOUT ONE LINERS AGAIN!!!” Zimelu cried. “I don’t want to hear another saw pun for the rest of my LIFE, I think I’m going INSANE-”

Neon jumped at the contact, only to shoot a confused glance at Rin, who only smiled sheepishly and quickly pushed the rest of the papers off the table. _What on Earth had they been doing while he was gone?_

  
  


Monday. Another chance at talking to the elusive Purl.

Neon walked with Rin to Cadence Academy, after a few minutes of waffling between the class rep and the secretary they’d managed to snag a visitors badge for Neon. It reminded him of the military badges he’d worn long ago, though this one was a lot less polished.

Students milled about, and Neon swore he recognized some of them, but before he knew it Rin had been grabbed by the forearm by a spunky blonde girl yelling to him about something related to a band, and dragged him off, presumably for the band thing. Which...left Neon alone again.

He didn’t have to wait too long for the bell to ring, and eventually the halls were deserted besides him, so he asked the receptionist where the library was and decided he might as well wait there for classes to end. He only hoped no one would find it strange.

Neon pulled out the dragon book again, fingers brushing over a design that looked similar to him, but he couldn’t place why. Perhaps it was because of it’s raptor-like head, that stirred distant memories from elementary school when he learned precisely what a dinosaur was.

The bell rang loudly in Neon’s ear, startling him out of his reading. What? School’s over already? It had hardly felt as though any time had passed. Neon set down his book and looked around for that one specific student he’d been hearing so much about.

He kept his attention at the door and waited, some students came and went, checking in and out books and browsing, but no Purl-Hew. He sighed, cracking open the book again. He’d gotten through quite a solid chunk of it now.

He’d once again become invested when the library door opened near silently. Neon looked up, and lo and behold, the very student he was looking for. He quickly jumped to his feet, almost running over, but his stride was interrupted when he came face to face with a chest. A. A  
very big chest with very big arms that slowly crossed over it. Neon gulped and tilted his screen skywards.

He looked up to see the face of a man looking back, his brows furrowed and eyes glaring down at the cyborg. He seemed. Familiar. Neon J nearly jumped when he spoke, the man’s voice was low. Neon...remembered something.

“What is your business here? Don’t think I didn’t see you watching my students for the past hour, and who knows how long you’ve been sitting there.” 

Neon was quiet for a few beats, circuits running hot with embarrassment at being caught or maybe something else he couldn’t place as he took a step back and a breath, trying to reclaim his composure. 

“A-ah, well, I can see why you’d be concerned but I was looking for a particular student-s-see I was wishing to speak with them aa-about...uh…” Neon trailed off, not coming up with a believable excuse in time. He sighed and put a hand on his screen, trying to slow down how fast his radar was spinning. “That sounded much less creepy in my head.”

“I’m sure it did.” The curly-haired professor raised a brow, definitely not believing Neon.

 _WELP, time to dip!!_ Neon scrambled back to his book and scooped it up, turning back to the professor he was sure could toss him over a hedge in a second, and stammered out.

“W-well, I doubt any explanation I give will not sound strange so I’ll just see myself out!! Uh...apologies for any inconvenience! Good day!” Aaand he did the Walk of Shame out of the room, the professor watching him like a hawk the entire time.

Purl-Hew turned a page.

Neon sighed, thoroughly humiliated,as he stepped up to the crosswalk outside the school. None of his plans had worked! ...then again, they weren’t his plans, all of them formed on some info one of his charges had given him, but still. Things have been weird at the school lately, but he doubted he could even show face there again after that miniature fiasco.

Neon leaned back on the couch dramatically with a sigh. The butler bot Sven placed a cup of tea on the table next to him before quietly leaving, nodded kindly to Zimelu as he walked into the room, intending to just pass by, but stopped when he felt the utter vibes coming from Neon.

“...lemme guess. You...stepped in dogshit.” Zim put a finger to his chin as Neon sat up, slightly shocked.

“N-no?”

“Ohhh. Yeesh. Your date cancelled?”

“WHAT? NO?”

“Ah, you got beat up by two gremlins for running an EDM boy band.”

“What are you-what are you talking about???” Neon held up a hand in defeat.

“I dunno man, you just look beat. How about you tell me what happened, so I can stop making stupid guesses.” Zim vaulted over and landed on the couch, crossing his arms and tilting his head condescendingly at Neon. “Go on, spill.”

“I...I don’t think I should be seen at your school again.” Neon sighed, sitting up. Zim opened his mouth to ask what he meant, but shook his head and closed it. 

“My attempts to talk with Purl-Hew so far have come up empty, I either miss him or get chased out. I wonder if it’s ever worth the effort?” He ranted, waving his hands rather animatedly as Zim just rolled his eyes and held up a hand.

“You’re overthinking it, J-Man, just sit at the park, I’ve seen Purl there plenty of times! He's usually doing some nerd shit like the chess board. Just ask him to play you or something. Not that hard.”

Neon stalled for a second, before slapping a palm to his screen.

“Oh, Zimelu, you’re a genius!” He clapped his other hand on Zim’s shoulder, which made the kid jump.

“HEy-wait -what really? Uh, thank you?” He fidgeted, embarrassed. Neon wished he could smile at the guy.

“Of course. Tomorrow I’ll spend my day at the park, I’m sure I’ll be able to speak with him then!” He let go of Zim’s shoulder and pumped his fist into the air with newfound resolve.

“That’s great, man, glad you got a plan.” Zim smiled. “Uh. Can I ask you something real quick?”

Neon turned back to him, significantly more relaxed than a few seconds ago.

“Yes, speak freely solder.”

“..are you gonna drink that? And if so how?!” Zim pointed at the rapidly cooling cup of tea still on the coffee table. Neon stared at him for a moment.

“Soldier, there are some things you don’t want to witness.”

“...oooookay then.” Zimelu raised up his hands slowly, content to drop that there and never touch it again.

  
  


Tuesday.

Neon visited the basement. He had time before leaving so he wanted to do some maintenance on a few things, patch up frayed wires and replace pipes and whatnot. He really should do this more often, he thinks, if this much damage can be sustained in the week he’d left it alone.

Then again, a monster attack hadn’t happened for a while, which usually meant something big was coming up soon. He wanted to prepare. He worked on upgrading the weapons factory for a bit, adding one or two new features, but paused after a nagging feeling distracted him from his work. He sighed, turning his head to the titular container, sitting idly on the workbench near him.

Three more of the transformation devices were still sitting there, waiting to be used.

Neon picked up the blue one, the 10 in the center glowing brightly as it discovered his magic. He went to put it back, but something in his gut told him to hang onto it. Again, here we go with the ‘hang-onto-the-magical-device,’ but every other time he’d listened to himself about them they always ended up working out in his favor. So, with a sigh, he slid the gadget into his pocket and went back to work.

He left for the park around noon. It was a nice day, the weather was clear and cool, a lovely day for a walk, which was what he was doing now. As he walked along the grassy sidewalk, he spotted the large pavilion in the center of the park. Well, it wasn’t exactly hard to miss. Surrounding it were a few tables, some were clear while others had various board games set up on them, people milling about and sitting down to entertain themselves.

Luckily for Neon, the very teen he was hoping to find was sitting at one of the chess boards, just like how Zimelu said. Neon J made his approach. It wasn’t until he was at the table that he got Purl-Hew’s attention, inquisitive rose-colored eyes looking up at him behind his round glasses. 

“...can I help you?” His voice was quiet but even. _Well, here goes nothing._

“Hello there, mind if I join you for a game or two?” Neon asked, nodding towards the board. Purl was quiet for a moment, then tilted his head down once in a quick nod.

Neon made a slight hum as he sat, looking over the board when he noticed something.

“Something wrong?” The blue teen asked, looking up from his own pieces.

“No, no, nothing, I’m just curious...wouldn’t you want to play white? I am the challenger after all.” Neon picked up a piece, a pawn and rolled it around in his hand before setting it down in it’s spot again.

The blue teen sat across from him, quietly steepling his fingers.

“Maybe, but I always play white.”

“Ah.”

Neon decided not to question further, he did have a goal to achieve, anyway. So, he made his first move. Jumping the knight over the first line of pawns.

“So, you’re in the same grade and Rin and Zimelu, correct?” 

“Mhm.” Purl nodded. A pawn moved forward.

“Heard a lot of good things about you. Like...how you’re the top student of your grade.” Neon swooped forward with his knight, taking Purl’s pawn.

“Is that why you’ve been following me around the past few days?” Purl said, voice still ever even, and slid his rook forward, claiming Neon’s knight.

J sputtered, he quickly supposes he isn’t as good at stealth as he thinks he is. Then again, he did get stopped by that handsome-UH. By that burly teacher, and he HAD made a ruckus there, right in front of Purl, so maybe he should have expected this.

“Y-Yes, though I assure you I wasn’t intending it to be...like that. I wanted to wait for a time you were free, and then I got...distracted.” Neon pushed a new pawn to the next square. Purl seemed satisfied with that answer and nodded, sliding his rook forward to line up with Neon’s pawn.

“Alright. So what’s the interest for? Seems like a lot of effort just to talk to me.” 

“Well you see,” Neon started, quickly moving his piece up another square and out of the rook’s grace. “I’m putting together a team, you seemed like a good candidate.”

“Does it have any relation to that new android hero team that’s been around lately?” Purl questioned as he moved one of his pawns forward, capturing Neon’s quickly as the cyborg hit another stall.

“They were right about you being clever…” he mumbled, jumping the other knight to take out Purl’s rook.

“It pays off to pay attention.” Purl adjusted his glasses and slid a bishop to the corner of the board Neon had left open, a clear shot to his king. “Checkmate.”

Neon looked over the board, two pieces on his side and one on Purl’s. “...guess I’m a bit out of practice. How about another round?”

“Fine by me.” And so, they set up the board again.

Neon j made the first move in silence, casually scooting a pawn out one square. Purl took his turn, jumping a knight.

“So, why speak with me?” The teen asked, leaning forward on his elbows. Neon moved his pawn forward.

“I think you’d be a good fit for the team, the other two spoke well of you, and I’ve seen firsthand how clever you are, and the team does still need a main strategist.” The cyborg explained, waiting for Purl to make his move. A pawn scooted forward.

“Thanks, but I’m not sure. I’m not the only smart person around. You could find better.”

Neon J continued to move his pawn forward.

“No, son, I’ve got a good feeling you’re the right pick.”

Purl paused, then took his turn in silence. Knight moved closer. Neon captured a pawn off Purl’s end and spoke again.

“Of course I don’t want to force you, a hero's job isn’t easy. It’s your choice in the end, if I have to, I can keep searching for other candidates.” J said, voice quieter. Purl hew was again silent for his turn, capturing Neon’s pawn easily. It wasn’t until two moves later that he spoke up, Neon having sent out a rook and Purl sending out one of his bishops. 

“...how are you so sure?” He spoke, near silently as Neon claimed his bishop with a click.

“Son, if you’ve seen what I’ve seen you learn to trust your instincts. They haven’t been wrong before, and I’m confident they aren’t wrong now.” He looked over the board. “And...I do believe that is a checkmate on your end.”

Purl-Hew raised his eyebrows, a look of slight shock on his face.

“I...uh..good game.” 

If Neon had a face he’d be grinning, but a short nod back would suffice. Purl crossed his arms, in thought for a few long moments before speaking.

“How about one more game?”

“Sounds just fine to me.” Neon leaned forward, picking up his pisces and setting them up as Purl did the same.

“...let’s raise the stakes a bit.” Purl offered, sitting up again and adjusting his glasses for the second time. “If you win, I’ll join the team.”

Neon tilted his head. “And if I lose?”

“Then I don’t. And I get bragging rights that I got to meet the cool cyborg superhero personally.” Neon suppressed a chuckle, but held out his hand for Purl to shake.

“You’ve got yourself a deal, son.”

And so, the game and the deal was set. Purl quickly gripped Neon’s hand, giving it a strong shake before Neon made his move. The game was in near complete silence, the only noises heard were the clicking of chess pieces on the board and the wind rustling leaves.

Neon’s radar pinged quietly, and his hand stopped midair, a knight held tightly in it as he processed the information.

A monster had appeared.

 _It’s not too big, only an object class, the boys should be able to handle it just fine without me..._ he thought to himself, quickly sending out the location for the boys to receive once they transformed and headed out. Purl looked up briefly when he noticed Neon stall.

“Are you alright?”

“Hm? Oh yes, apologies, let’s continue.” Neon placed the knight down.

A few minutes later, Neon’s internal messaging systems got an alert.

_1010_WHITE_REQUESTING_BACKUP._

Neon froze again. _It wasn’t urgent, surely, maybe the boys were just a little off guard._ He couldn’t respond though, Purl was looking at him expectantly. Neon stuffed his concern down and focused on the game.

5 minutes later, and…

_BACKUP_NEEDED_URGENT._

Neon hoped his anxiety wasn’t showing through his playing. He started bouncing his leg, half crouched over the board. They needed backup, He had to get there, but if he won he could bring another member to help.

_He had to win._

A few more turns passed. Neon visibly flinched when his internal systems alerted him of 1010 Red sustaining damage.

_Dammit, dammit, hold on a little longer soldiers…_

Neon sent his queen out, capturing one of Purl’s pawns.

Purl had picked up on Neon nervousness, and finally broke the silence as he set down a knight. “There’s something wrong, isn’t there?”

“It’s...nothing you need to worry about. Just a monster attack, the boys can handle it.”

Neon lied through his nonexistent teeth, and flinched again, another desperate ring for backup from White echoing through his head as he moved a bishop, taking out a pawn.

Purl looked over the board. _A choice._

He eyed his rook, lined up straight to Neon’s king, the misstep unnoticed by the jumpy cyborg.

_A gamble. A chance. But...one he found himself strangely willing to take._

His fingers skipped over the rook, instead taking one of Neon’s knights with a pawn, Neon sliding his queen in to corner Purl’s king just as fast.

“C-checkmate.” the cyborg declared, standing up and slamming his hands down on either side of the board.

“...so it is.” Purl smiled, standing as well and sliding his hands into his pockets.”Good game. You’re very good at chess.”

“So are you, soldier.” Neon straightened up and rifled through his pocket for the device, an urgent requesting backup message from Red this time pinging into his head.

“I suppose, I’m on the team now, right?” Purl shifted on his heels.

“Yes, you are, and I’m glad to have you on, son,” Neon lifted up the device, it glowing brightly in his hand. “I want you to know, if it ever gets too overwhelming out there, let me know. There’s no shame in wanting to back out.”

“Of course sir, I’ve already considered that, but let’s get out there and help the others now. You’re not that good of a liar you know.” Purl reached out to take it as Neon spluttered for the eighth time today.

“I-very well, follow me!” And they were off, Neon sent out a signal for the factory to fly to his location as Purl ran beside him.

“How do I activate it, sir? I’ll figure out the rest.”

“I’ve no doubt you will, soldier.” Neon chuckled, but pointed to the device in his hand. “Say ‘Boots to the ground’ to activate it, and quickly now.”

Just as the flying factory dipped under the cover of trees, Purl stood, holding the device high in the air as he yelled-

“Boots to the ground!”

  
  


It wasn’t a pleasant sight. There were blasted holes and singed advertisements floating down in the air, signs of a clear fight. The monster was causing massive collateral damage as it reared and roared at 1010 White, desperation on his face as he sent out one last distress signal before squawking and rolling out of the way of the roiling attack. It crashed into a building and not the titular hero thankfully, but still the cacophony from the explosion that destroyed the entrance more than made up for it as White popped back up.

He cursed at the sky, lobbing a few feathers back at the raptor-like monster with his blade, but they simply floated to the ground and the least White could do was kick the red-hot feathers away. 1010 Red kneeled a few feet away, clutching his arm and cursing like a sailor. 

White scrambled up debris to get to him, trying to draw the monster’s attention with calls and whoops, praying desperately for Neon to come flying in and save the two under-experienced heroes at the last second.

And who knew, his prayers worked.

His internal radar pinged and he looked to the sky, an animated blue android darting around the factory as Neon J fired off a gigantic shot, landing in the monster’s chest.

It yowled and flopped around, the raptor brandishing its glowing red feathers and claws and roaring loudly as Neon drew it’s attention, already reloading.

He didn’t have the chance to fire off again though, as the new android pulled a blue staff out of nowhere and slammed it back across the beast’s face.

The raptor-beast wobbled uncertainly on it’s side before crashing down, the strike seemingly much MUCH stronger than thought at first, as Neon slowed down and hovered over White.

“With all due respect, what on Earth took you so long, Cap!?” White ask-yelled. Though there was relief in his words, he couldn’t hide the worry in his tone. Neon J shook his head slightly in embarrassment.

“I’m so sorry I couldn’t be here sooner, soldier. I was recruiting our newest member here. I assure you I won’t ever be this late again.”

1010 Blue landed coolly and offered a sharp nod to White, before spinning on his heel professionally and facing the dinosaur.

“It’s shooting bombs! Watch out!” Red yelled from where he was still crouching, being right on cue as the monster got back to its feet, roared, and its feathers shot out, pulsing red as they flew towards the android heroes.

Blue simply set his jaw. With a sharp movement of his staff, he called up a gust of wind. The feathers slowed in the air, and eventually reversed, quickly being redirected back to the beast. It roared and stomped as its own feathers embedded into it, a few beats later, the echo of the explosion rippled through Vinyl City.

Blue blinked, and turned back to the rest of 1010, a tiny smirk on his face.

A marbled core sat in the wreckage, which was very quickly destroyed as Red threw a saw at it, slicing it and the goo it had hardly started to produce cleanly in half.

“Hah! Never SAW that coming huh?!” Red cackled, shoving himself to his feet and pointing at the remains of the monster with his good arm...only to pale and turn to White, holding his hands up defensively.

“NO-DON’T-”

White practically squealed, bouncing happily on his feet as Red slapped a palm to his face and groaned.

“You remembered one of my one-liners!!!”

“Shut up! They’re so bad and cheesy!! How could I POSSIBLY forget them! It’s like an earworm but for trashy puns!!

“You do care!!! Ahh, I’m so proud!” White put his hands on his heart and pretended to swoon, as Red punched him in the shoulder.

“Knock it off, no I don’t!!”

As the two team members argued, Blue returned to Neon J’s side, a broken little plastic dinosaur covered in rubber bands in his hands.

“What should I do with this, captain?

“Ah, leave it soldier, the clean up crew will handle the rest. For now, let’s return to base.”

Blue nodded, setting the toy on a concrete slab as he waited for the others to stop their bickering and get ready to leave, which they only did once Neon grabbed Red by his collar and hoisted him under his arm like a sack of potatoes, the android’s jets had been damaged in the fight.

  
  


Back home, after the slightly uncomfortable feeling of de-transforming was over, Purl stumbled and stared at Rin and Zimelu with wide eyes.

“Are you two alright? You took some damage back there.” Neon asked, hopping off the factory and jogging up to the boys.

“Yes sir! I just feel a little sore, but I’ll be fine!” Rin held up his arm, patting his bicep with a crooked smile. The advantages of being a robot hero was that damage taken in battle wouldn’t stick with you too much if all you did was get rolled twice. Unfortunately for Zimelu, he’d gotten a bit more than rolled.

Said red teen groaned, rubbing at his shoulder. “Ghnn...might have to sit out basketball practice but I’ll be fine…” he said, turning to Purl-Hew. “Uh, thanks for the save, glad to have you on the team. You cool.”

Purl nodded. Whatever he was going to say he kept to himself. “Likewise. Looking forward to working with you.”

“Oh! Purl! While you’re here, we should discuss something super-duper important!” Rin clapped his hands together before scooting over to Purl’s side, quickly latching onto it like a leech with that mischievous smile on his face. 

“Um...alright, what is it?” Purl calmly removed his arm and poked Rin in the arm, moving him back several steps.

“We gotta get you some one liners! You used a staff as a weapon right? And wind? We can get some good stuff out of that!” Rin jumped, almost cackling as he led Purl out of the room. Zimelu let out an exasperated sigh before reluctantly following behind, if only to help rescue Purl from the onslaught of horrid coincidental phrases in his immediate future.

“Rin, stooooop! You’ll scare him away with your lame puns!” He groaned, chasing them out of the room and quietly adding a “Or at least wait for me…”

Neon J laughed to himself as he leaned against the table, glad the boys were getting along. He thought over the battle, dropping his arm. That was too close a call. He couldn’t take a risk like that, not with a team as new as them. He needed to be more alert next time, be on time, maybe.

He wouldn’t make the same mistake again.

  
  


_[Fade to black, roll credits!]_

“Next time on 1010 Heroes! The team continues to grow! But the next member isn’t recruited through conventional means. What will Neon J do when he gets a sunshine colored shadow? Find out on the next exciting episode of…1010 Heroes!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A big thanks to my friend Spork for the beta read and editing!


	5. Sunshine Yellow Shadow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team now a trio are getting along well, but they can’t seem to agree on who should be the next team member, lucky for them, neon j runs into an eager boy who ends up following him around.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey hey look at me trying to keep up with that monthly schedule!  
> Again thank you for your continued patience! ^_^

There’s the sound of rustling papers as a figure huffs in frustration. Letting out a frustrated cry they snatch up their recording device

“Log date xx/xx/20xx. This has to be a joke? Surely that couldn’t be it? During my research into 1010 Yellow all I have been able to find is nothing! No first battle where he appeared! He just arrived with the rest like they were doing any other battle. Why? How? Surely that cannot be it!” They paused to take a breath and calm down “I’ve decided to give up this search for now. I’ll return to it at a later point” and with a click they turned off the tape recorder and harshly slammed it on the desk. It was frustrating, they knew there had to be some event for a new member to be recruited, but where was it? How could they have missed it!? With a grumble they returned to digging through old records. Maybe they just overlooked it

[Into plays! You know the drill]

Purl-hew looked up at the house before him and blinked. ‘It’s pretty big for just one person to live in on their own.’ He thought to himself, though he decided not to dwell on how Neon j spent his time or money and instead walked up to the door and knocked. Not long after Rin swung the door open and exclaimed. “Oh sweet you’re here! We need your input on something, come here.” And grabbed Purl-Hew by the arm, dragging him inside before he could utter any sort of comment.

Inside Zimelu was looking over a couple notebooks as well as the marked yearbook Rin had laid out earlier. He looked up and gave a slight hum of greeting when purl appeared. 

“Okay Purl, we were trying to narrow down potential new teammates and we can’t agree on anyone here. You’re smart, maybe you can help break the tie?”

The blue teen looked over the list, then over at the yearbook, he pointed at one of the pictures circled.

“What about her? She seems like a team player.”

“Yeah I know but I think we’re pretty solidly in the all guys team, I’d like to try and stick with that brand image if possible” Rin crosses his arms. Zimelu looked up and gocked.

“Brand? Dude we don’t have a brand, we aren’t getting paid for this! ... right? Are we supposed to get paid?!” Zimelu looked over at the only other person in the room, Sven the cleaner bot, he looked back and shook his head with a slightly confused expression. Purl-Hew looked back up to Rin and blinked. 

“It’s far too early to be thinking about that, Rin”

“I- okay maybe but a lot of other old heros had really distinct images, I was thinking maybe it’s not bad to think ahead for our team.”

“If I may interject sirs,” Sven spoke up. “Most heroes tried not to focus on their public image and let their actions speak for themselves. The few that were more focused on brand deals and image tended to become fixated on that instead of saving people.” He helpfully explained. Rin was silent for a long moment, then let out a defeated sigh.

“Okay okay I get it, focus on helping not a brand. So, Zim what are your thoughts on her?”

“...nah, pretty sure she still hates me for hitting her with a baseball that one time” both of the other teens in the room looked at him, Zim raised his hands up in defense.

“I said sorry! Not my fault she’s holding a grudge!” Rin let out a frustrated groan as his head fell into his arms in exhaustion. Zimelu crosses his arms again as purl-hew went back to reading through the list. Neon j by now had entered the room and looked over at the teens, he tilted his screen ever so slightly.

“Everything alright in here?”

Zimelu looked over and called. “We can’t agree on anybody, and Rin’s overthinking it”

“I am not!”

“Dude you were worried about a thing that’s a non issue”

“It never hurts to be prepared!” Rin huffed. Purl hew stayed silent, reading over names and pictures. Though he gave pause when he noticed something that stood out from the rest of the names.

Purl looked up and raised a brow at Rin. 

“Rin... do you have your crush on this list?”

“WHA-“ Rin immediately sputtered, sifting up straight. “NO why would I do that? I just think zuke could be a valuable teammate.”

“...I didn’t say who it was” purl deadpanned, But he had a small smirk spreading on his face. Gotcha. Rin turned bright red.

“Okay! Okay look!”

“Dude?! DUDE!? You just wanted to spend time with your crush??? Dude!? Real shit??” Zimelu exclaimed, laughing. 

“NO?? Maybe? Okay look-“

“The classic strategy of knowing your crushes secrets the rest of the world doesn’t. Not the route I’d have taken. Seems a little too ‘adventure romance novel’ to me” purl-hew chuckled while pushing up his glasses. Neon j shook his head with a sigh and left the room before he could hear more of Rin frantically trying to deny the obvious. It didn’t look like they’d be coming to a conclusion anytime soon. So he decided instead to get out of the house for a bit.

It had gotten more lively lately, and while the change wasn’t unwelcome, to someone who usually lived alone with two cleaning robots as his only companions it was a sudden change he wasn’t used to yet. 

So pulling on his dark blue coat he spoke to Marcie who was near the door. 

“I’m heading out for a bit, Keep an eye on the boys will you?”

“Of course sir, have a safe walk” she nodded with a smile as neon j stepped outside of the house. It was a clear day, the wind made the usually sunny day a little chilly, but it was lovely weather for a walk. And that’s just what neon j planned to do.

Walking along the sidewalk, he soon enough reached the streets of the bustling city. The Metro division was known for its innovative technologies, even more so than other districts. Though what made this district stand out how was practical it was. Well practical for most working folk at least. As such, metro typically wasn’t as crowded compared to other districts, which appealed to Neon j enough to move here. 

Unfortunately today was a horrible example of this since the city streets were much more busy than the usual fair. Neon j wasn’t sure if it was due to some holiday he neglected to remember or if he just picked the worst time of day for a casual walk, either way his radar was pinging like mad with all of these people it picked up. It was overwhelming, the continuous, constant 

Ping

Ping

Ping

He couldn’t take it, not right now not today. Without thinking he ducked into an alleyway, trying to escape the endless

Ping

Ping

Ping

It overwhelmed his senses so much he didn’t realize how far in he had wandered until the noise had died down and the area was barren. 

Suddenly regaining his senses he looked around, he didn’t recognize where he was. Obviously it was the alleyways behind some apartment buildings, but the lack of any clear landmarks or signs completely turned around his sense of direction. And no matter where he went everything looked the same to him.

He was hopelessly lost.

Neon j sighed to himself, this day couldn’t possibly get any worse could it?

“Heya!” A voice suddenly said beside him, the universe had decided that yes his day could get worse.

Neon jumped and looked over to see a high school age boy standing next to him. His sunny yellow hair was tied back in a loose ponytail, and brown star shaped eyes looked up at him. Besides him stood a yellow and green German shepherd dog, it’s tongue lolled to the side while it wagged its tail happily.

“Oop! Sorry man didn’t mean to scare ya. Just thought you were cool and wanted to say hi.” The teen hummed and walked a few steps ahead of J. “And look! We’re heading the same way! Funny right?”

“Uh, yes funny.” Neon j replied, slightly confused. He started walking, hoping maybe the teen would loose interest and head his own way. Unfortunately the yellow teen seemed determined to follow him, the whole time asking him various questions, or rambling about seemingly whatever came to mind. Neon j was tuning him out, or trying to at least. But he drifted when looking over at the dog trotting alongside him. From where neon was he could see the yellow and green markings on its back from the shape of a leaf. Odd, but not uncommon. Deciding to use a fleeting moment the kid stopped talking, he spoke up.

“So uh, this your dog? Not very many I’ve seen with a marking like that.” And little did neon know he just opened Pandora’s box, because the teen looked over and spoke excitedly.

“Oh yeah! His mine! His name’s Lemon Lime, oh mine is Haym by the way nice to meet ya, anyway I found him when I was getting parts for my club house. Someone just dumped him! Can you believe that? So I gave him some of my sandwich and put a doggy bed in the clubhouse and he’s been following me ever since. He’s the best dog a kid could ask for! He’s trained and everything, why would someone dump him??? I mean he’s so friendly and helpful and-“

Neon j continued to walk as the teen, apparently named Haym, walked and rambled alongside him. By now neon had tried to escape the maze of alleyways that he was stuck in, but the more he walked the more lost he felt. Without any frame of reference he couldn’t retrace his steps. Neon j hoped his slowly rising panic wasn’t showing anywhere in his posture. He barely registered Lemon Lime’s concerned whine before haym stepped in front of him, stopping his movement in its tracks.

“Hey, is your screen supposed to be beeping that fast? Wait- oh shit is that something you’re not supposed to point out because it’s rude? Sorry! I don’t think” the teen exclaimed, suddenly going quiet at the end. Neon j looked down at him, sighed, and shook his head.

“No no it’s fine, I’m just a bit.... uneasy. Not usually in this part of town” he admitted. Haym thought for a moment, then looked up with a small smile

“Need some help? You look like you need help.” Haym spoke up. Neon j was about to say no, and argue that he could find his way on his own... but even he couldn’t deny he was horribly lost. So with a sigh of defeat he nodded.

“Yes, I do need help.”

Haym gave a thumbs up. “Neato, where you headed? I know these streets like the back of my hand. We’ll get you back to where you were headed” the yellow teen grinned as his dog gave a helpful boof in agreement.

“Metro division, I live just off of Baracca” j replied. Haym thought for a moment and spun around until he was facing the right direction and pointed.

“Righto! It’s this way. Let’s go robot guy!”

“I’m a cyborg not a robot” neon j sighed as he followed behind the teen.

“Yooo that’s even better!” The teen looked back with a grin and a sparkle in his eye. The dog trotted ahead, sometimes circling back to walk alongside the two. Neon j chuckled to himself and shook his head, following behind the excited teen.

“So like you’re a cyborg? That’s so cool! Do you got like hidden weapons or powers or-“ haym began to eagerly ramble, though unlike last time Neon j didn’t find himself as annoyed, even answering some of the teens more reasonable questions. But soon enough they were back at the streets neon j recognized and had to part. Haym gave a wave as his loyal dog returned to his side.

“Bye! It was nice meeting you mister cyborg!” He grinned. J waved back before responding,

“Neon j, you can call me Neon j”

“Oh awesome! See ya around mister J!” And with that the two went separate ways. His walk ended up being a bit longer than he anticipated, didn’t even go as planned either. He wanted to escape the noise, not end up lost with it. But for some reason he didn’t feel very annoyed about that. He was left to ponder why as he walked back home.

Opening the door and stepping inside neon j’s radar picked up that the boys were in the media room. And watching a movie from the sound of it. As he went to hang up his coat Sven approached him.

“Welcome home Master Neon, I’m glad your back, you were gone long enough we were getting a bit worried.” J looked over almost bashful and rubbed the back of his neck.

“Yeah sorry about that, my short walk ended up taking a detour.... which reminds me I need to check something” he made his way to the kitchen, where he noted the boys had left all their notes and the list. (He’d have to remind the boys to clean up after themselves later) opening the yearbook he flipped through the pages trying to find one name.

“Haym, haym, haym.... come on things couldn’t be that perfect.” He mumbled to himself. Logically he knew the odds weren’t that good haym also went to the same school the rest of the team went too, even less likely they were in the same grade, and even yet smaller odds he was also on the list! But neon j had this feeling he had to check. And just when he was about to give up and put an end to this wild search, he found the bright yellow smile of none other than haym in a yearbook photo.

And what would you know there was a circle around his picture.

“....well I’ll be, what are the odds of that?” Neon j chuckled to himself dryly. Well the universe has apparently decided to give him this candidate, at the same time they were stuck too. Might as well see what the rest of the team thinks. So making his way over to the media room he peeks his head inside. Zimelu was draped over the arms of the rocking chair while Rin and Purl shared the couch, whatever movie they were watching sounded like some action flick, but that wasn’t the point. Neon j waves to get their attention, and when Rin turned the volume down he spoke up.

“So I was on a walk earlier and ran into someone who seems to be in your grade. Does the name Haym ring any bells? Yellow hair, rambles a mile a minute?” 

Rin hummed in thought, looking up as he racked his brain, though Zimelu was the first to speak.

“Oh haym? Yeah I’ve heard of that guy. Played tennis with him a few times. He doesn’t know when to shut up but he’s friendly.” 

“That’s the kid with the star eyes right? Think he tried to talk to me while I was studying once.” Purl-Hew Nodded. Rin snapped his fingers as he finally remembered.

“Oh him! Yeah he’s a class clown type, but he seems to find a way to get along with everyone. Why? Do you think he’d be a good fit?” Rin questioned. Neon j stepped more into the room just to lean against the door frame, he hummed in thought.

“Maybe, I don’t think it’d hurt.... but I want to make sure of one more thing before I make any decisions for sure” Rin seemed satisfied with the answer and nodded, Zimelu however-

“Dude haym sounds way more fun than these two dorks. I say hell Yeah add him to the team!”

“... i'd be offended but I refuse to give you that luxury” purl deadpanned while adjusting his glasses, Zimelu stuck his tongue out right back at him. Rin sighed and shook his head before looking up at neon j with a grin.

“I’ll try to talk to him at school tomorrow, I don’t think getting along with him will be too much of an issue, but it’s good to make sure beforehand right?” Rin stayed as he looked between the other two boys. Zim gave a thumbs up and purl nodded. With plans made neon j nodded and excused himself.

A few days passed, and the general consensus was that haym being the next team member was agreed upon. According to the boys haym wasn’t hard to be friendly with at school, although purl did comment about him talking a lot but neon j expected that at this point, and so now came the hard part.

Neon j had to find haym and be absolutely sure he had what he was looking for. As friendly and eager as the kid was, that wouldn’t matter if he didn’t have that eagerness to protect.

It also did not help that he was surprisingly hard to find. It also didn’t help that neon j was unwilling to go to the school again, so that left the alleyways where he last saw the kid. His past few tries left him no luck. So, trying to regroup. Neon j decided to try another tactic.

Lady Luck has apparently invested a lot in this haym kid. Might as well try that again. So with literally no other ideas, Neon j went down to the Basement hideout. In a practice motion he pulled out the box containing the remaining two devices, carefully grabbing the yellow one he looked at it briefly.

The 10 at its center gave off a faint yellow light.

“Whatever the odds are... let’s hope they’re in my favor this time” he muttered to himself as he pocketed the device. Soon after he pulled on his coat and left the house properly.

Walking the streets again he wondered around where he last remembered finding haym... which was harder than he thought considering last time he didn’t recall going there in the first place. Turns it it’s a lot harder to get lost on purpose than to get lost on accident. It also didn’t help he felt uneasy walking down abandoned alleyways alone. Somehow Hayms constant chatting and rambling made him not realize just how tight and dark these paths were. 

The buildings were too close,

Trash cans and junk made the walking space even less than it would be.

This can’t be where haym led him?? Stopping in place neon j shook his head.

“No no, this is all wrong.” Trying to take in his surroundings he muttered to himself. “This is definitely not where we were before... son of a- did I get lost again?” He sighed. Guess he should try to head back. Lady Luck just wasn’t on his side today.

And apparently she decided to mock him since when he turned around he was face to face with some thug with a knife.

On reflex neon j took a step back. ‘Oh come on, why now? I don’t even have anything on me to steal... except the device... shit’ j cursed to himself as the knife wielding thug spoke.

“Give up the goods old man. Nice and easy.”

“...not sure why you think I have anything of value. Could be broke for all your know” neon replied, trying to keep his voice even. Though another voice spoke as a second thug appeared out of the shadows.

“Really? You? Broke with prosthetics as nice as those? Cut the crap, we aren’t dumb” the second thug spit. The first one took a threatening step closer.

“Just empty the pockets and nobody gets hurt” the thug threatened crudely. Neon j held his hands up while taking a step back.

“As much as I’d love to, these pants don’t have pockets. And I left my wallet at home.” 

“Oh? That’s a shame, we don’t take kindly to no round here-“ though before the other thug could take a step closer something yellow and loud suddenly dropped down, and with a loud thwack, did a drop kick knocking the thug on his face.

“Bullseye!” Haym cheered briefly while pumping a fist in the air. The second thug was stunned for a brief moment, but before he could react lemon lime dashed up and chomped at his arm, he let out a scream as haym ran over and kicked him in the knees causing him to fall. Both teen and dog then ran over and haym quickly grabbed neon j by the arm.

“Come on- we gotta move” he yelled, neon j was quick to run along as the two dashed away from the scene. Good call too, as neon j’s Radar detected the two thugs moving again.

“Where are we running, son?” Neon j asked as haym tugged him down another turn.

“I got a hiding spot, they won’t find us there” he looked down briefly at the dog dashing alongside them.

“Keep them off our tail okay boy?” And with a boof of acknowledgement LL ran ahead.

Haym turned a corner the opposite way the dog went and he and neon continued to sprint down the ally’s, neon’s radar picked up the two thugs by now, chasing them. But he also picked up barking, muffled yelling, and then the two blips neon identified as the muggers running in the opposite direction. Haym pulled him past another corner. 

“Almost there! Hope you don’t mind climbing Mister J” haym called back. 

“I can climb just fine,” J replied. Another corner turned, neon j recognized the two enemy blips had turned around and now heading towards their direction, he couldn’t pick up Lemon Like though...

Haym stopped near some crates and started climbing up one,

“Come on this way, I hid the door.” He called down, neon j nodded and followed after. What he was lead to was the inside of what looked like a clubhouse, something similar to a treehouse but made with crates and metal sheets instead of wood. It looked cozy with the blankets piled up next to a doggy bed and a small portable cooler. Haym practically pulled him inside and neon j was left to wonder how he hadn’t seen this little shack from the outside. Haym, almost as if he guessed what the cyborg was thinking, smirked and raised a finger to his lips.

“It’s a secret clubhouse. You can’t tell anyone where it is okay?” J had to stifle a laugh.

“Your secrets safe with me, soldier.” He went quiet though, trying to pick up the two thugs on his radar, they were getting closer. 

He still couldn’t pick up lemon line. Dread built in neons stomach.

“...haym, do you think your dog got away safe?” He asked quietly. Haym didn’t even hesitate to respond.

“He is. He’s smart, he’s got tons of places to hide.” J decided not to argue that. Not that he had time. The thugs had gotten close enough he could hear their footsteps. Acting on instinct j pushed himself and haym as far away from the shacks entrance as he could. Thankfully haym clued in on what was going on and covered his mouth with his hands.

They both held their breath as they heard the footsteps of their pursuers below them, they grunted out muffled “where did they go?” And the second responded “must have gone ahead, Don't let them get away!” And the footsteps ran off and soon became silent.

Neon didn’t release his held breath until he couldn’t pick them up on his radar anymore, and with an audible sigh of relief the two relaxed.

“That was a bit closer of a call than I’m used to, but hey still lost them! That’s another point for me.” Haym tried to lighten the mood, though neon j did pick up the slight shake In his voice. Immediately he was concerned.

“Haym, while I do appreciate the assist, why did you help back there? Those thugs were bigger than you, and were armed. The odds were against you on every front. Why risk yourself for someone you don’t know?... don’t know well anyways.” Haym looked up a bit and blinked, neon j wondered for a moment if he zoned out again, but the teen looked down at his hands before quietly answering.

“...because... because I don’t like it when big powerful people bully those they think are below them. It’s not fair, I don’t like it. And if I can help it I want to stop that.” Neon j would have been satisfied with that answer alone, but haym glanced out the brief opening that acted as a window and continued. “And... and monsters have been popping up lately, bigger and badder and scarier. I want to stop them but- well last time I tried that I got a nasty bruise and a black eye,” he chuckled dryly before continuing. “I’m not strong enough to fight them... but I can fight guys like those thugs or bullies. And I can cheer up sad people or help cool cyborgs who get lost.” Haym looked back, and that characteristic smile neon j grew to associate with the teen returned in full force. “And I like helping people!” Neon j was stunned to a brief silence from Hayms speech. But got out a brief nod. 

“It’s good kids like you exist in this world, you’ll do great things in the future in sure of it” he found himself saying. Haym makes a happy noise and grins 

“Wowie that’s a real honor coming from you sir!” Haym exclaimed. Though seeming to notice the time he looked out the hideouts makeshift doorway. “Those guys should be gone now. I’ll walk ya back to the Main Street, they won’t find ya there.” Neon j nodded, but the familiar weight of the device in his pocket gave him pause, it was a gut feeling, logically he knew he’d likely run into haym again, he did go to the Boys’s school after all, but he had the distinct feeling if he didn’t say something now he’d never be able to talk to haym about this again.

...and his gut had never done him wrong...

“Wait, hold on- before we leave.” Neon j found himself saying, haym looked back with a confused stare,

“Uh, yea?” He tilted his head. well no going back now. Neon j took out the yellow device from his pocket and held it in his hands. Haym looked at it confused, but before he could ask anything neon spoke.

“You have a good heart, and clearly shown you’re drive to protect others, and I want to offer you an opportunity to help even more. I’m sure you’ve heard of those 1010 heroes by now correct? I’m the one who’s been gathering the team, and I want to offer you the chance to join them. But be clear, hero work is not easy, there’s no shame if you don’t believe you can handle it. And if it ever gets too overwhelming there’s no shame in wanting to back out.” As he finished haym looked back up at him from the device, j could swear those stars in his eyes were sparkling even brighter now. 

“Dude- Dude! You’re like the coolest cyborg guy!!” He exclaimed, but seeming to realize he had yet to answer shook his head and gathered his thoughts.

“Of course I accept! 100% yes!” Haym cheered while grabbing the device from neon’s hands and looking over it excitedly. The act so sudden neon couldn’t help but let out a short laugh.

“So how do I use it? Can I try it now? Do I get like a code name? What about-“

“Alright alright slow down there, I’ll be happy to teach you what you need to know back at the base.” Part of neon j was glad that for once he didn’t have to do training during a battle. Haym nodded eagerly and stood up.

“Then what are we waiting for?? Let’s go!” And running out the door he cheered. “I’m gonna be a superhero!!! Whoooo!!!” Neon laughed, and silently was thankful they were in an area with nobody else around. 

They hadn’t gone too far out from the clubhouse when he heard a familiar bark and a ping appear on his radar. Haym looked over and his grin somehow got even wider.

“Lemon Lime! Oh there you are! Oh what a good boy! You’re amazing! The bestest boy!” Haym slid to his knees and practically hugged the dog, showering him with praise and pets. LL excitedly barked back and licked happily at the teens face. Neon j found himself laughing as well and walked over to give the golden dog a pat on the head.

“Good dog” he mumbled, Lemon Lime boofed proudly.

Unfortunately the dog didn’t accompany the two back to neon’s place. Haym sent him back to the hideout for some well earned rest. So it was just the cyborg and the teen as they approached the mansion. Haym, as usual, was rambling about stuff, mostly how excited he was and various questions about what’d he do and who the team was. Neon j answered what he could, but decided it’s best to leave most of it a surprise. Neon j approached the door and pulled it open, calling inside”

“Boys I’m home. And I’ve got our newest teammate. Be nice to him alright?” Almost immediately he picked up the boys on his radar, and soon after heard the footsteps as they ran and drifted to a stop in front of the door. Zimelu, when he saw the teen next to Neon j, cheered,

“Hell yeah! We get the fun guy!” 

Purl hew gave a smile and a simple wave, Rin grinned and stood up straight to try and look more professional.

“Hey haym! Welcome to the team! We’re glad to have you-“ but he was cut off as haym let out an excited squeal and tackle hugged Rin to the ground.

“Dude! Dude!!! You’re a part of 1010!? That’s so cool!!! Which one are you? Oh! And you two? Which ones are you guys??” Haym looked up from Rin to look at both Zimelu and Purl-Hew respectively, leaving Rin to stutter in a failed attempt to regain his composure. Haym hopped to his feet just as Zimelu burst out laughing, clutching his stomach. Purl-Hew put his hand on his head.

“Wow I think I’ve already got a headache, you’ll certainly make it more lively here” he spoke with a sigh, but neon j suspected he wasn’t actually that upset about this. J walked over to Rin and offered him a hand.

“A bit much isn’t he?” J chuckled. Rin just nodded and accepted the hand, neon pulled the teen to his feet. Rin dusted himself off as haym turned on his heels to face neon j.

“Oh! Captain sir! By the way, when do I learn how to use the fancy pocket watch?”

J sputtered.

“I’m sorry, what?”

“Fancy pocket watch! That’s... that’s what it is right?” Haym says pulled out his device to emphasize the point. Zimelu, who by now has gotten over his laughing fit. Blinked at the yellow device before pulling out his own to look at.

“Actually, Yeah, now that you mention it this does look like a watch.”

“I- no that’s not what the device is. Nor is it what it’s called” neon j tried to defend, though Purl-Hew spoke up

“Then what are the devices actually called sir? I never heard you bring it up” all the boys looked at the cyborg who shifted on his feet, 

“I uh... well... I never actually... named them” neon j admitted flatly. The room was silent for a beat before Zimelu shrugged and exclaimed

“Fancy pocket watch it is!”

“A-At least until you think of something more official” Rin quickly added. Neon j nodded as the boys made their way further into the house. Rin, who had regained his composure by now. Eagerly explaining various tips and tricks about what to do with the device, neon j was almost thankful nobody has told haym how to activate it yet, last thing he needed was an android superhero breaking stuff inside his house. He went to get himself a drink as the boys settled in the kitchen, huddled around the table excitedly talking about plans and learning about their newest member. Some minutes passed before Rin suddenly got an idea

“Oh! Haym! Since you’re on the team now you gotta help pick the last member, or well help with narrowing it down. We got a list you can look over- hold on let me get it” Rin dug into the bag still laying on the table before pulling out the spiral notebook, flipping to the appropriate page, and handing it off to haym.

The teen hummed as he looked over the list, though Zimelu loudly announced. “Oh by the way Zuke can’t be on the team, Rin would be too busy making a fool of himself to impress his crush!” Rin went cherry red and stood up, shooting a glare at Zim.

“DUDE! This does not need to be public information!!!”

“Hayms gonna be on the team he should know this stuff” Zim said faking innocence. Though haym surprisingly didn’t join in on the teasing, instead he looked up and blinked.

“Oh you like zuke? Are you friends with the guy?”

“I- well. N-no... I’d like to but we hardly share classes and he seems busy so I don’t want to bother him-“

“Want me to like, schedule you guys a meetup? I’m friends with his friend Mayday so I’m sure we could work something out.” Haym offered, surprising Rin so much he was dead silent. Haym continued to ramble though. “Well probably just having a one on one meetup could seem weird, he wouldn’t agree to that, but maybe a group thing? Mayday likes making friends and she always bugs zuke about making more, I could introduce them to all of ya if you’d like-“

“PLEASE!?!?” Rin’s voice cracked with excitement. Zim covered his mouth in a futile attempt to hide his laugher. Purl-Hew spoke up though.

“That sounds nice. Thank you haym.” He said with a nod. Haym grinned and gave a double thumbs up.

“No prob bob!”

“...it’s Purl-Hew”

Haym laughed, leaving the other teen confused as to what the joke was.

Neon j stood at the door frame, leaning against it as he looked on at the boys making plans for the near future. He glanced over as Sven approached his side, hands behind his back.

“Things are sure to get more lively around here now sir. Are you going to be alright? I’m sure this is unfamiliar for you.” He asked, tilting his head ever so slightly. Neon j sighed and shook his head, a smile apparent in his tone as he spoke.

“It’ll take some getting used to, but I’ll be alright.” Sven smiles back.

“Of course sir.” 

It’ll be alright.

[Fade to black, roll credits]

“Next time on 1010 heros! The team is nearly complete! But they face their greatest challenge yet, how will they handle a monster threat not yet faced? And how will one anxious green teen be the key to defeating it? Find out on the next exciting episode of… 1010 heros!”


	6. Green With Envy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team is struggling to find a final member, and neon j is having his own issues, but when they face their toughest battle yet it’s up to one anxious green teen to save the day. Will he succeed? Find out on this exciting episode of: 1010 Heros!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one turned out way longer than expected  
> It certainly didn’t help that I lost the wip at one point haha  
> Anyhow, thank you for your patience! Sure hope it was worth the wait ^_^

There’s the sound of fingers tapping on a desk, soon followed by the click of a recording device 

“Log date xx/xx/20xx, I do find it curious, I knew that those 1010 hero’s first fight with a monster like this would end up being interesting. But not only was I correct in this assumption, but they also recruited their final member seemingly for this fight. I suppose that makes sense, and here I was hoping none of them could Purify” they grumbled as they clicked off the recording device, as frustrating as these hero’s were, watching them squirm for even a little while was amusing.

[into plays let’s go gamers]

  
  


Haym hummed to himself as he jogged along the sidewalk to J’s house. He had the route memorized by now, he had been visiting a lot more lately. The place was awesome! It was big, he could run around without being yelled at, and Neon J sometimes let him sleep over. Only way it could be better is if Lemon Lime lived there, unfortunately he was still living in the secret clubhouse, not that Haym minded, neon’s place was leagues better than home. Speaking of, when Haym spotted Neon J’s house in the distance he sped up his pace. Soon enough he was knocking on the front door. Didn’t take long for Sven to open it.

“Ah! Hello Sir Haym, good to see you, the others are in the dining room”

“Awesome! Thanks Sven!” Haym grinned before running inside, Sven barely having enough time to step aside so the teen didn’t run into him.

As Haym walked through the hallways he soon entered the familiar dining room and spotted the other teens. Zimelu and Purl-Hew were in what looked like a very serious game of scrabble with Rin watching them both, or was he the referee? With how this game was going he couldn’t tell.

“I add to your A to make At” Purl-hew took his turn,

“I add to your At to make Rat” Zimelu took his.

“I add to your Rat to make Biostratophic” 

If looks could kill Purl-Hew would be dead where he sat with that look Zimelu was giving him.

“There is no way that’s a word!” Zimelu exclaimed, Purl-Hew remained neutral.

“It is, would you like to look up the definition?”

Though before Zim could say anything about where Purl could shove his definitions Haym ran over and slammed his hands flat on the table and exclaimed.

“Has anyone put down fergilicious yet?” His distraction worked as now all the attention was on him. 

“...Haym.. I’m almost certain that’s not a word” Purl-Hew deadpanned, Haym looked at him and grinned.

“Only if you’re a coward it’s not!”

Zimelu looked at Haym, then the board, and then his pieces as if seriously debating whether he could put that down. 

Unfortunately he didn’t get the chance as Rin spoke up. 

“Oh! Since everyone’s here now maybe we should uhhhh discuss the thing we mentioned last time?”

“The thing?” Zim tilted his head as Rin dug into his bag and pulled out the List(tm) 

“Oh that thing” Zim blinked.

Rin looked up and smiled. 

“We’ve got one more team member to pick out, so let’s try and narrow down our options now! The sooner we get a full team the better right?”

“Makes sense.” Haym nodded, the rest of the table agreed, and so the game was shoved aside so the discussion could begin.

Unfortunately, by the time Neon J walked into the room to check on the boys the discussion had dissolved into bickering. 

Zimelu and Purl-Hew were glaring at each other, Rin had his head in his hands, clearly stressed, and Haym was being unusually quiet.

Oh boy

“So, how's the potential team members list going troops?” Neon J asked, though had a feeling he already knew the answer to that.

“We haven’t been able to agree on anyone!” Zimelu exclaimed.

“It doesn’t help that you seemed to have ticked off almost everyone in the school” Purl-Hew grumbled

“I apologized! It’s not my fault they’re holding grudges! You can’t expect me to be buddy buddy with everyone”

“Do you even have any friends outside of this group?”

“Do you?!”

Zimelu and Purl-Hew were glaring at the other, looking about ready to break into a fight. Rin let out an exasperated sigh.

“I didn’t take into account how all our different backgrounds would effect things.” Rin looked incredibly stressed, and Neon J wasn’t sure if it was from trying to make a choice or the fact two of the teens at the table were about to brawl. Haym seemed to be the only one who didn’t looked distressed.

Then again Neon J had never seen him this silent before.

_ Oh boy _

Time to step in, Neon J raised his voice so he could be heard.

“I appreciate you all taking this all seriously, but I don’t want you to stress too much over this.” 

Rin looked up and took in a breath.

“With all do respect sir,” he paused, “we’re talking about the final team member, whoever we choose will likely effect the group dynamic, not only in battle but outside as well. If we don’t get this right it could cause problems in the future. So how can we not take this seriously?” Neon J paused, trying to think about how to word his response. Rin had a point, but J really didn’t like seeing the teens this worked up, though before he could think of a response Haym spoke up.

“What if we just.... don’t?”

Now the attention of the group was on the yellow teen. 

“What?” Zimelu loudly questioned, so Haym continued.

“What if we... didn’t get a final team member?” Haym shrugged, “I mean we’ve been handling monsters pretty well so far, and I think we got a good team balance uh, Purl! Back me up here.” He looked over at the blue teen, who leaned back into his chair and crossed his arms in thought. He hummed to himself a moment, thinking, then spoke.

“Well you’re right about us being semi balanced, Rin and Zimelu take up a mostly closer range while Haym and I handle longer range. And that’s not mentioning how Zimelu can also do some long ranged attacks with tossing his buzzsaws or me using my staff for closer ranged fights. All around we’ve been balanced enough to handle most fights against object class monsters fairly well, and we’ve been able to call in for backup from captain J if needed.” Purl-hew paused, and looked over at Neon J, “but I’m willing to guess object class aren’t the only type of monsters we will face, am I not mistaken captain?” 

Neon J slowly nods at Purl's statement.

“You’d be right in that assumption soldier, and given how you’ve all gotten stronger as a team it’s safe to assume you’ll be seeing stronger foes in the future.” He set his coffee down on a nearby table and cleared his throat. Straightening his posture and snapping his arms behind his back, Neon J raised his voice

“Alright! Listen up troops, because it’s high time I give you all a proper rundown on the various monsters you’ll be facing” with almost practiced timing Marcie and Sven jogged over to his side, holding little cards, presumably with something drawn on the other side. Haym briefly wondered if this was pre-prepared

“As you know, you’ve been fighting object class monsters,” as he spoke Marcie flipped over her card, it was a purple blob surrounding a small circle with what looked like a crudely drawn mirror inside, Neon J pointed to the card. “These monsters are classified by being spawned from object, items, and any other non living materials that are contained in their core. They typically are non powerful monsters with little to no sentience and will act on instinct-“

“Yeah yeah we get it,” Zimelu interrupted, “monsters that only exist to cause problems on purpose, tell us something new J-man!” Neon J’s radar blipped a moment and he mumbles, 

“I was getting to that...” he straightened up and continued.

“Anyways, non living things aren’t the only items that can be corrupted,” this time Sven flipped over his card, on it was a vaguely humanoid purple blob surrounding an orb with a stick figure inside, Neon J pointed to the image

“This is a living class monster, a typically stronger monster type spawning from living things such as plants, animals,” Neon J paused,

“And people”

The boys were dead silent.

Haym shifted in his seat uncomfortably.

“Living class monsters typically have some level of sentience, and thus are more likely to be calculating and planning instead of running off instinct, this makes them more dangerous than object class. As they have a living being in their cores the usual option of destroying the monsters core isn’t ideal if you want the person to be rescued unharmed. Thus the ideal way to deal with them is to Purify” with that, Neon J closed his arms behind his back.

“And that concludes my explanation, any questions?” 

The boys were mostly silent for a few beats, taking in the information. That is until Rin spoke up.

“Okay so... So how do we Purify?”

“Ah excellent question!” Neon J nodded and clapped his hands together. “It’s quite simple, you exhaust the monster into a more passive state, usually by taking them down though brute force can work in a pinch, and once they’re in that state you Purify” Neon J explained easily, the teens blinked at him.

“That’s great and all but that doesn’t explain how we do that Purify thing itself” Zimelu states while leaning on the table. Neon J took in a breath to explain further but paused. 

“Well to Purify you just... well it’s uh... you just... and...” J paused, but looked up when Haym raised his hand.

“So is it like a you know it when you know it thing?” He asked, Neon J pointed with a nod.

“Yes! Exactly!”

“... well we’re screwed then” Zimelu grumbled into his hands. 

“Ah, no need to worry troops! If and when you face a living class monster I’ll accompany you until one of you learns to Purify.” And with that the table seemed to be in agreement, for the plan anyhow.

Soon enough Neon J left and the boys decided to play scrabble again, to de-stress.

J went to the kitchen to get something to drink, though paused when he noticed how empty the cabinets were.

“...ah, guess the boys have been going through food faster than I usually do.” He mumbles to himself, guess he should go get some groceries.

Neon J wrote down a mental list of what he needed and pulled on his white jacket, calling out

“I’m going to pick up some groceries, call if you need anything!” He opened the door and headed out.

The grocery store itself wasn’t too big, but it had everything J could need so he didn’t mind. He picked up a can off a shelf and looked it over, and deciding it’s what he needed placed it in his basket. All and all this seemed to be a usual grocery trip.

Nothing was out of the ordinary, other than the occasional stare but J was used to it at this point, he’s got a radar for a head of people didn’t turn to look he’d be surprised. Though what did catch him off guard was when someone approached.

“Excuse me? Are you that cyborg hero that’s been spotted fighting monsters?” This made the cyborg pause, he’d never been approached before, then he remembered he wore a white jacket, which was the same color as the uniform he wore while fighting monsters.

Oh no

“Oh, no, you must have me confused for someone else” he answered, not looking away from the cereal box he was holding. Thankfully this seemed to be enough to turn this individual away as they left with a mumbled apology.

Not even a minute later someone else approached,

“Wow you look just like that cyborg hero guy, any relation?”

“No not at all.” He answered again moving to walk into another isle, didn’t help that this guy followed him.

“You sure? A friend of mine saw the guy in person and you match her description dead on!”

“What a coincidence! But we share no relation.” Thankfully this seemed to get the guy to stop following.

But his radar couldn’t help but pick up the small crowd that was starting to gather a short distance away.

He just wanted to pick up groceries.

Hoping maybe to loose the crowd that not so subtly was following him he dipped into a smaller isle, he didn’t want to get mobbed, not today, if he got noticed people would gather and ask questions, and if people heard he was in the area some more eccentric fans would start trying to find where he lived, and if that got leaked some villain would use that information and find his home they can’t know where he lives all of his supplies is there and the boys visit often and he can’t loose them he can’t-

His radar pinged. 

‘Calm down j’ he mumbled to himself, it was too crowded, he needed to find somewhere to calm down, dropping his basket he tried to make a run to the bathroom. But his radar picked up on the crowd again. ‘Darn it all’ he internally cursed, there’s got to be another route he could take, another path and other way look harder.

His attention was grabbed when he heard a quiet voice hiss at him. 

Looking over he saw a green teenager with freckles looking right at him, he was leaning out of what looked like an open broom closet, and he was waving him over.

Neon J hesitated for a beat, but his radar pinged and picked up on the crowd moving closer, so deciding this was better than going through them he jogged over towards the teen. 

“In here, it’s employees only so they can’t follow you here... I think” he spoke quietly, Neon J barely picked up the end bit but nodded and ducked into the closet, the teen following him in and closing the door behind them.

The broom closet itself wasn’t that small, big enough to comfortably hold everything, and thankfully big enough that J didn’t feel claustrophobic. With a sigh Neon J leaned back onto the wall, trying to not knock over any of the mobs or brooms leaning against it. The green teen stayed near the door, peaking his head through the small window in the center of the door, he pulled away before anyone could walk past.

“Okay, you should be okay in here, at least until the crowd dies down.” The teen looked over as Neon J let out a sigh.

“Thank you son, really saved me a world of trouble there.” The teen gave a small nod in response,

“I-oh! It’s no issue, my dad owns the place and since I help sometimes I got the keys, I uh, sneak back here sometimes to calm down. It’s uh, loud out there” he gave a nervous chuckle, then went silent, Neon J gave a quiet nod, knowing the feeling. Though soon enough the teen went to sitting next to the door leaving them both in silence, the only sound was the muffled footsteps outside the door.

...

Neon J realized very quickly this kid wasn’t about to start a conversation on his own. So after about a minute of silence, he decided to speak up.

“What’s your name, son? I don’t believe I caught it earlier?”

“Hm?!” The teen looked up, surprised, J wondered for a moment if he startled the guy, though he didn’t worry about that for too long as the green teen spoke up.

“Eloni, it’s Eloni sir,” he answered sticking his hand out for a handshake on instinct, J of course responded in kind.

“Neon J. Nice to meet you, son”

“Oh! Y-you too sir.” And with a quick nod they both went back to relative silence.

...

Why is Neon J sensing a pattern here? Not that he minded the silence, it was a good way to calm down.

His radar picked up that the crowd was still gathered in the store, he’d wait a bit longer.

...

Surprisingly, Eloni spoke up, breaking the somewhat awkward silence between them.

“Um, if it’s alright with me asking, why were you getting mobbed? You’re not like... a criminal are you?” J couldn’t help but let out a brief chuckle.

“No no, I’m not anything like that. I got confused for that cyborg hero that’s been around. Guess I should have seen that coming, I shouldn’t have worn white” he sighed, defeated. Shame, he really likes this jacket. Eloni nodded, quiet for a few long beats, then hesitantly asked.

“...are you actually that cyborg hero? I mean- I don’t want to assume! Sorry.” He looked down, embarrassed. Neon J glanced over, despite being bothered by the crowd minutes earlier, he couldn’t find himself being annoyed when the teen asked a genuine question.

The boys are definitely making him soft,

“Well... that depends, what would you say if I was said hero?” Neon J found himself replying, the teen seemed a little off guard, but looked away to think for a bit. Taking a breath in to speak a few times before stopping himself and thinning again. Finally he answered quietly.

“I’d um... probably leave you alone. I mean if you were that hero guy and you’re in a grocery store you’re obviously getting groceries and I doubt you’d want to be pestered while doing that so um... yeah” his voice got quieter as he finishes speaking, rubbing the back of his neck nervously and looking to the floor. 

If J had a face he would have smiled at the teen. But instead his radar pinged.

“You’re really considerate huh?” He spoke with a small chuckle, Eloni raised his hands in defense 

“Oh! No it’s more the anxiety really- Haha” He squeaked nervously. Neon J nodded deciding not to continue this line of conversation.

And once again the two went quiet.

...

After a few minutes J’s radar picked up that the crowd had died down considerably, he should probably be heading out while he could. So he pushed himself off the wall.

“I should head out, I’ve overstated my welcome. Thank you again Eloni.” He spoke to the teen, giving a firm nod at he end as he headed to the door. Eloni scrambled to his feet and moved out of the cyborgs' way, though it wasn’t until Neon J was reaching for the doorknob that he spoke up.

“W-wait! You never answered if you were that hero or not!” Almost as soon as he spoke Eloni looked like he regretted it, immediately looking nervous. J looked back, and tilted his screen cheekily.

“You’re a smart kid, I’m sure you know the answer to that,” and with a quick motion he exited the room with a wave.

Eloni was left alone in the silent broom closet. He stood there a few beats, before shoving his face into his hands with a muffled scream.

He just met a hero

And he embarrassed himself in front of him

Great :)

  
  


By the time Neon J was at the door of the mansion he realized he forgot to finish shopping, he lost his basket in his rush to hide and was now empty handed. He sighed, he wasn’t about to go back out today, so with a defeated sigh he opened the door. Sven was dusting nearby and looked up to greet him.

“Welcome home Master J! . . . Is everything alright? You look upset?” The butler bot tilted his head, Neon J glanced over, then shook his head while shrugging off his jacket.

“Remind me to not wear white again whenever I go out” 

Sven blinked once, then nodded

“Noted sir” 

And with that Neon J sulked off to his workroom.

Though he paused briefly when he noticed the boys were still here. They had gotten out a card game now and we’re playing that. Any discussion of new teammates seemed to be over for the day. He was about to continue on his way when he remembered the teen he met while out, he did look about the boy’s age....

Eh, worth a shot. 

Neon J leaned into the room and raised his voice.

“Quick question: do any of you know if you have a classmate named Eloni? Green curly hair? Seems shy?” He asked, getting the boy’s attention. They looked up, Zimelu quickly shaking his head no, Purl-hew looked to be thinking, but soon enough shook his head as well. Rin looked to be thinning hard, but before he could reach a conclusion Haym spoke up.

“I don’t think I know any- oh wait! I think I’ve heard of him. He’s uhhh in the drama club! Really quiet, not really sure what he does in that club, don’t think I’ve seen him in any school plays” Haym thought out loud, Rin suddenly looked nervous.

“He’s in the drama club? Did I miss him? I don’t remember anyone with that name- hold on let me check the yearbook.” Rin put his cards down and made a hasty grab for his backpack. Purl raises a brow at Rin.

“You’re not expected to memorize every student in the grade, Rin. That’s asking a lot even for you.”

“Yeah what Purl said! Besides I think Eloni’s sort of forgettable, can’t blame ya for that” Haym spoke, slapping Rin on the back in an attempt to comfort him. Neon was unsure if it worked.

“Maybe... but he’s in a club, I feel like that’s important to remember” Rin mumbled. Though seeming to recall why this was brought up he looked over at Neon J “oh! Why did you want to ask about him, captain? Is he a posible new teammate?” Now this got the rest of the boy’s attention. Neon J shrugged

“I’m not sure, id have to make sure of a few more things before I make any solid calls... but I do wonder, if he was a teammate would any of you have any objections?”

The boys thought a moment, then spoke

“Not really”

“I have no objections”

“He seems cool!”

“Fine by me” 

Well that was encouraging. The cyborg hummed in thought,

“Well thank you for humoring me, carry on” he declared while exiting the room.

Guess he had a candidate, that trip wasn’t completely a waste of time.

————————————

The very next day 

Two friends were chatting in the theatre room, it was lunch hour, and they had the place practically to themselves.

Which was nice, Eloni always enjoys Kayane’s company.

The excitable teen was holding a small bundle of papers on her lap as she lightly kicked her legs over the edge of the stage, humming as she thought to herself.

“Okay, so what about that space lady? Cute right?” She asked, tilting her head towards her friend, her hair buns bounced ever so slightly at the action. 

“Ummm, well I’m sure she’s very nice but uh...”

“Not your type?”

“Yeahhh”

“Oh well more for me then! Hehe” Kayane giggles to herself, Eloni smiled to himself. They had met up in the theatre room today to discus something ‘incredibly super important’ in Kayane’s own words, but instead they were talking about girls. Not that Eloni minded, he wasn’t very good at starting conversations, Kayane knew this and was completely fine with starting up conversations. He really appreciated that about her.

“Okay okay last one, how about that rocker chick? With the cute hair braids?” Kayane looked eagerly at Eloni, he froze in place, trying to find something to say.

“A-ah, well, um, she’s uh, definitely cute-“

“Ooooohh so that’s your type~” Kayane grinned, Eloni hid his blushing face in his hands, Kayane giving him a playful punch to the shoulder,

“Don’t worry! I’ll put in a good word for ya with her.” 

“Kayaaaaane noooo” Eloni whined, getting a small laugh out of his friend, 

He really did enjoy spending time with her despite everything.

Thankfully Kayane didn’t tease him long as she slid off the stage, dusting off her kimono and holding up her papers.

“Anyway- lets get down to business! I want to practice for my audition some more! And I need an audience, so that’s gonna be you, okay Eloni?”

“Oh! Sure, that’s fine with me” Eloni nodded, looking over at the other teen. “So you’re trying out?”

“Yes! And I plan to get in! They’re doing my favorite play this year!” Kayane squealed in excitement and spun in place, dramatically putting a hand to her head

“The drama, the thrills! Will the princess get her prince? Will the evil curse be broken? Oh! I just love it!” Kayane squeed, “I’m going to try out for the lead role, I’m going to dazzle the judges with my stellar acting and get the part!” She declared confidently. Eloni Gave a small applause and nodded, though hummed a bit.

“I don’t doubt your skills Kayane, but um... maybe temper your expectations a bit? I’ve heard around that this is a really popular play, a lot of people are trying out. So uh maybe it’s safe to have some backup rolls in place? Just so you don’t get disappointed being cast for a role you didn’t want? Maybe?” Eloni offered, Kayane hummed, considering it, than looked at the printed out script in her hands.

“Well... there are other parts I’d be happy with, like the humble maid, or the trickster witch. Actually I think I’d even be happy as the singing tree. Oh I just want to be in the play, I’d be happy with any role!” Kayane declared flourishing the papers dramatically. Eloni grinned.

“And I’m sure you will get one! You’ve been in the club a while, if they didn’t give you a part I’d be surprised” he chuckled nervously, being a part of the Tec crew, he often was around during shows, Kayane was in just about all of them since she started attending, that’s how they met after all. The club knew she was good, she must have known it too.

“True true, but just because I have good odds doesn’t mean I can slack off! You got your copy of the play right? Read some lines with me I want to get this perfect!” Kayane spoke, bouncing on her heels. Eloni nodded and pulled the script pdf up on his phone and gave a thumbs up. 

Kayane was high energy, and sometimes overwhelming,

But Eloni was grateful she was his friend. And he’d happily step a bit outside his comfort zone to help her.

————————

It had been about a week now,

Sven was sure of it, after all he was very good at keeping track of time. It should be expected, he was programmed to be a butler after all, if he wasn’t punctual he’d be less of one. Sven also was good at keeping track of others, in fact it had been exactly one week, 22 hours, and 16 minutes since Neon J had returned home from a grocery run with nothing to show for it aside from an upset demeanor.

Sven had wanted to confront him about it, but J was either busy or would avoid the subject, so Sven had decided to just leave it be for now. Besides he was busy with other things, he could confront the captain about this once the boys were tended to. 

Though he finally got his chance one afternoon. The boys were in another room, the game room specifically, they were far enough away that they wouldn’t hear any conversation through the wall.

Neon J was sitting at the kitchen table, holding the green transformation device in his hands. He was looking at it with an expression Sven couldn’t exactly read, but what he was sure about was the captain needed someone to talk to.

And here Sven was to do just that.

“Master J, is everything alright?” He asked once he had approached the cyborg. J jumped briefly, surprised, and looked over at the Butler bot. He was quiet for a moment, before sighing and looking back at the watch.

“Sven, be honest with me... do you think the boys really are capable of handling themselves? Even without a full team?” 

“...Sir?” But Before Sven could think of an answer Neon J spoke again.

“Have I prepared them enough? Will they be able to handle themselves if they face a powerful monster and I can’t help them?” 

“Sir-“

“Or have I put too much pressure on the boys? They’re still young, they shouldn’t have to stress about these things so much, I don’t want to overwhelm them- I- I don’t want to loose them too I can’t let them turn out like-“

“Commander Neon J!” Sven raised his voice suddenly, Startling J out of his rant. Sven looked at the cyborg sternly, then his expression softened as he kneeled slightly to look J dead on.

“Master J, I’m a butler not a therapist, but I’m your friend. And if you want my honest opinion than here it is. You’re doing everything you can for this team. You speak about not putting too much pressure on the boys, but that should also apply to yourself. The boys have potential, but they still have a lot of growing to do, and it’s your job to help with that.” He paused a moment, making sure his words were understood before continuing. “If I may use a comparison: think of it like taking care of a flower, you have to water it and tend to the soil, but must also give the flower room to grow on its own, too much water and it’ll drown, too little and it’ll wither. It’s about balance.” He spoke with a small smile, hoping to have comforted Neon J, at least for now. The cyborg looked at him, then back to the table and sighed.

“I suppose you’re right, Sven” J admitted, sitting back in his seat and finally looking a little relaxed. Sven chuckled

“Of course I am sir.” He stood back up with a smile, pausing, then chuckled. “Though if I must be brutally honest sir, I think the boys are a little too overconfident at the moment. I’d advise doing something about that soon” this got a small snort from Neon J, shaking his head

“I’ll keep that in mind, thank you Sven”

“Always happy to assist, Master J” 

“For the last time Haym we can’t keep any of the stuff that comes out of monster cores it’s not ours!” Purl-Hew groaned as he shoved his face into his hands.

“I know but come on! It was one of those sticky hands! Those are really cool!” Haym whined, it’s very clear he isn’t about to drop the topic easily. Rin sighed, 

“I doubt you’d get much use out of a broken sticky hand toy anyway.” He tried to reason, Haym had been going on about the monster core they broke during a fight the other day. The monster itself wasn’t too difficult, just a bit annoying, though what really tested his patience was Haym‘s laser focus on the toy. 

“I’d find a way, those guys are really fun!”

“Haym, buddy, you can literally get like five of them for a dollar at the toy store, just pick some up after school or something!” Zimelu grumbled, trying to focus on a worksheet he procrastinated doing during class.

“Ughhh fiiiine” Haym relented, finally putting an end to that discussion. Purl-Hew pinched his nose with a sigh.

“Well now with that ...’discussion’ over with I’d like to move onto something more productive-“

“I’m working on my homework I’m being productive!” Zimelu exclaimed, 

“You are and I’m very proud but that’s not what I was talking about” purl deadpanned. He looked at the group before folding his hands together.

“We should prepare some sort of plan for when we inevitably have to face a living class monster, since we can’t seem to figure out how this Purify ability works our best bet is to help assist the captain in any way we can”

“Oh Yeah! that sounds like a good idea.” Haym agreed, Zim gave a thumbs up and so the discussion began. Rin hummed in thought 

“Captain J mentioned talking the monster down as a step right? Maybe we can help with that?” He offered, Zim crosse his arms

“Yeah one problem with that chief, I suck at talking with people,”

“Clearly” purl deadpanned earning a glare from the red teen.

“Well you can always help with other stuff!” Rin quickly spoke up before any bickering erupted. “Like keeping civilians safe or keeping attacks off whoever is doing the talking?” Zimelu, thankfully, seemed to agree with that. He leaned back with a nod.

“Now that I can do!”

“Great! So let’s practice,” Haym exclaimed and raised his hands to mimic claws. “Rawr! I’m a big scary monster who’s secretly suffering emotional issues! Just try and talk me down puny mortals!” He growled, pretending to be scary. Zimelu snorted and covered his mouth to try not to laugh. Rin blinked as Purl blanked.

“Um, okay sure we’re doing this now,” Rin mumbles before raising his voice 

“So uh, mister monster, what’s troubling you?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know weather boy!” Haym sneered, getting a full on laugh out of Zim.

“Wh- Haym!”

“That’s realistic! Nobody likes opening up about emotional issues or any of their problems in general with strangers, especially strangers they don’t like.” Haym explained while lowering his arms. Purl pinched the bridge of his nose,

“As annoying as that is, he is correct.” Rin let out a defeated groan and shoved his face into his arms. Zimelu finally calmed down from his laughing fit and spoke,

“Okay for real, all seriousness, we should probably ask J-man for help on this stuff, because by the looks of it we desperately need it.” Rin made a noise so purl assumed he was agreeing, so with a sigh he relented.

“Alright, we’ll ask him tomorrow when we meet up, we just faced a monster yesterday so we should be safe to wait a bit.” 

“Yeah! And besides, if we do have to fight a monsters it’ll probably be an object class,” Haym chimed in happily, leaning against the table he added with a smile.

“I think as long as we don’t have to face a living class monster we should be just fine!” Zimelu slowly blinked at the yellow teen in near disbelief,

“Haym, buddy, pal, broskie, do not tempt the universe like this.” Haym looked over and blinked innocently.

“What? Don’t worry so much Zimmy, what are the odds that we’re going to fight a monster anytime soon? And a living class at that? We’ll be just fine!” 

Though everyone at the table went silent when their watches went off.

Zimelu gestured at his device and gave Haym an ‘I told you so’ look, the other teen just shrugged helplessly.

“No time to worry about that,” Rin stood up with a determined look.

“Let’s get moving!

  
  
  
  


Eloni ran into the empty gym as fast as he could, he wasn’t sure exactly what was wrong, but from the text Kayane had sent him he was willing to bet nothing good. His suspicions were confirmed when he found Kayane crying at the end of the wall.

“Kayane!” Eloni calles out, running over as fast as he could, “what happened? What’s wrong?” 

“It’s horrid! Unthinkable! Unfair! How could they do this to me!?” She cried, tears flowing from her eyes and dripping down her cheeks. 

“Kayane, take a deep breath for me okay?” Eloni careful put a comforting hand on her shoulder, and patiently waited for her to do as suggested. Thankfully she did, and that’s when he spoke next.

“What happened?” 

“The play, they didn’t, they didn’t give me a part! Not a background character or an understudy or or anything! Nothing!” And just like that the little calm she managed to reclaim was lost as a new wave of dispare hit Her. “How could they do this to me!?”

“What!” Eloni exclaimed, genuinely confused “how? You’ve been in the club for two years, you were in like every play how could this happen!?” Eloni questioned, more to himself really. He tried to think quickly, he could worry about how exactly this happened later, right now his best friend needed him. But just as he opened his mouth to speak again Kayane suddenly shoved him away.

“Leave me alone! Let me wallow in my misery in peace!” She exclaimed before dashing out the back door of the gym. Eloni stood there stunned for a moment. But quickly regained his senses, Kayane was in a worse state than he thought. He needed to do something, so he ran after her.

“Kayane!”

  
  
  


“1010! Boots to the Ground!” 

And in a colorful flash of light where the teens once stood the Android heroes 1010! Dashing outside they took to the skies, tuning into their internal comms they awaited the briefing from Neon J. But instead of the usual they got something else

“I’ll be doing the briefing in person troops, I’m going to be joining you for this mission”

Ah, 

Red looked just about ready to punch Yellow for jinxing them before Neon J flew behind the boys in his weapons factory, white cape flowing behind him.

“The location has been sent to your coms, I’ll fill you in on the way. Let’s move out troops!” Neon J declared, the bots answered in unison

“Sir yes sir!”

  
  
  


Kayane ran onto the football field, she didn’t know if anyone was around, honestly she didn’t care. She just wanted to be alone, to cry, to wail, to despair. With the tears blurring her vision she didn’t notice the pebble in front of her until she had already tripped and fell to the ground. Her knees stung but she ignored it. She only cried harder.

It was unfair, how could they cheat her out of a role? She was just as good as everyone else! Better even! They left her out on purpose! The new drama teacher must have done this! That’s the only way this made sense, she wailed at the audacity of it all.

She was crying so hard she didn’t even notice the dark colored slime slithering towards her.

  
  
  


“It’s a living class isn’t it?” White asked, Neon J nodded.

“Unfortunately, but don’t worry, I’ll be there for support. From the looks of it this one doesn’t seem too terribly powerful... but it’s best to not underestimate these things” he explained. The boys exchanged an unsure glance but nodded in agreement. Whatever happened they would be ready to fight. As they approached the coordinates White realized something, he recognized the building they were flying over.

“This is... Cadence Academy!”

“The monsters at our school??” Yellow exclaimed getting a worried but determined look from Red.

“Then we better make sure nobody gets hurt because of it!”

They all agreed and boosted ahead.

  
  
  


Eloni was nearly out of breath as he ran up to the football field, once again he wondered why they had made it so far from the gym building. But no time to think about that now, he had to find his friend.

“Kayane!?” He calles out, but got no response. Increasingly worried, he stared to look around. Where could she had gone? Though as he walked he began to get an ominous feeling, the field was too quiet. The air had a chill to it that made the hair on his neck stand straight up.

He had to find Kayane now.

“Kayane?? Where are you?” He called out, hoping for a response.

But instead of a response, he looked out and spotted a figure in the distance, it almost looked like....

Eloni went pail.

  
  
  


The team circled around until they had landed on the football field, doing a classic superhero landing. Neon J’s factory hovered above them, his radar spinning to locate the monster 

“It’s gotta be here right? Is it hiding?” Yellow questioned. Blue got an uneasy feeling,

“Stay on guard! It’s likely trying to get the jump on us” he exclaimed while pulling out his staff, the rest of the team deploying their own respective weapons in turn. For a few long moments, nothing was heard besides the low ping’s of Neon’s radar.

Ping

Ping

Ping 

Bweep!

Neon’s radar shot around as he located the monster, 

“There! Ready yourself troops!” He ordered as the boys turned to the directed location.

They looked just in time to see a large dark blob melt and form into a humanoid shape, she had on what looked like a kimono, with the sleeves dripping that neon colored slime at the ends, her hair done up in twin buns with flowers that White couldn’t name, but they were white. But her face is what got him, she had what looked to be intimidating that of the female Kabuki theaters makup, but her eyes were empty and looked ready to leak with black tears at any moment. 

1010 White hoped his worry didn’t show on his face as he tightened the grip on his sword, Neon J spoke up.

“This doesn’t have to turn into a fight, we can talk this out.” He spoke loudly, so the monster could hear. She looked up at him, paused briefly, then growled.

“There’s nothing to talk about! I have no reason to believe you! Everyone just undermines me in the end!” She shrieked as she threw her arms out, revealing sharp claws that were hidden by those melting sleeves. 

“I am Dramaturgy, and I will make you all feel the anguish I’ve been delt!” She cried out as she made a charge for the group. 

There was no talking.

The battle had begun.

The group scattered as they dashed out of the way of the slash. Neon J took to the skies as he orbited the field.

“Keep her in the area troops! I can’t pick up any civilians here but she will definitely hurt someone if she gets to the school building.”

“Sir yes sir!” They answered in unison as Yellow and Red took off to provide support at a distance. White and Blue dashed forward, attacking head on. But before they could strike, Dramaturgy let out a piercing screech sending the two flying backwards. Blue managed to land on his feet but white fell onto his back.

“Okay. She can do that.” He dryly chuckled as he jumped back onto his feet. Looking over at blue he asked, “got any plans?” The blue Android was quiet, an expression White couldn’t read behind those shades. But after a beat of silence he spoke.

“We’ve got to try talking her down. If not that, distracting her until the captain can do it.” 

He declared, he must have relayed the message to the others as Red nodded and Yellow gave a thumbs up. Said androids were holding her attention pretty well, staying just out of reach of her claw attacks. Though just as White and Blue dashed up to rejoin the fight Red called out.

“Uh, hey! Calm down a bit won’t ya?” This seemed to be exactly the wrong thing to say as Dramaturgy gave Red the nastiest glare she could make before grabbing something on her hip, so fast that red barely was able to dodge, a paper shurikin was tossed his way. “Wha-“ red exclaimed stumbling in the air before regaining his balance.

“Dude! You don’t just tell someone who’s upset to calm down! That’s the worst thing you can do!” Yellow called over, earning an exclamation from red. 

“I TOLD YOU IM BAD AT THIS!”

White winced before using the internal messaging system to relay an order.

“Okay new plan: we hold her attention and keep her attack off of the captain until he gives us new orders” 

And with a plan in motion the boys moved in to act as a distraction, not knowing how long this could last.

Meanwhile throughout all of this battle Neon J was hovering off to the side, trying to use what information this monster's look and fighting style could give him to clue him in on what the core problem could be.

‘Think; she’s at a school football field, so she’s likely a student or a teacher, with how she’s acting I’m willing to bet student. That’s a theatre theme going on, but what could have her this upset?’ He thought to himself, trying to quickly piece together what the best strategy to talk her down would be. But his train of thought was thrown off the rails when something tugged at his coat, how did he not notice he was this close to the ground?

Neon J looked over and saw a familiar green face looking up at him,

Eloni looked near tears as he cried out.

“Neon J sir! Please tell them to stop! That’s my friend, don’t hurt her!” 

“Hold on, slow down there son” Neon J knelt on his factory platform so he could be closer to the teens height. 

“That monster, she’s my friend! It’s Kayane! She- she was upset and and ran off- I chased after her but then then I saw this monster appeared and and it’s her! I know it’s her! Don’t hurt her! please!” His breath hitched as he tried desperately not to cry. Neon J couldn’t watch, he carefully put his hands on the teens shoulders and spoke quietly.

“Take a deep breath for me son, okay? I promise we’re going to save her.” He explained, this seemed to calm the teen down for the moment, but there was now a new problem. There was a civilian here in the middle of a fight. 

“You can’t stay here, Eloni, it’s not safe-“

“But Kayane is in danger! I have to help her.” Eloni cut him off, with a confident Neon J wasn’t expecting out of the teen. Okay so he wouldn’t easily leave... but if he knows who the monster is Neon J could get what information he needed to effectively talk her down.

Or...

Neon J remembered he still had the green device on him, he had neglected to put it away after he got the monster call. 

It was worth a shot.

“Eloni, you want to help your friend, right?” He asked, tone serious. The teen nodded.

“Of course I do.” 

“Then come with me, you might be the only one who can help her” and with that he jumped off the weapons factory, quickly dashing for cover, Eloni was close behind him.

As they ducked behind the bleachers Neon J pulled the green transformation device out of his pocket. It gave off a soft green glow.

“Alright, listen well because I don’t want to say this more than once. This device is what’s used to transform someone into an android hero, with this you’ll be safe to get closer to the fight so you can talk her down. Now you’re in no way obligated to keep it, if you want this to be you’re one and only fight I’ll respect that, there is no shame in backing down if you’re overwhelmed.” He explained, the teen looking at the device in his hands. Slowly, carefully, Eloni took it into his own. Using one free arm to wipe the tears from his face he looked up at Neon J with a newfound determination.

“I understand sir.” 

Neon J nodded and stood.

“Good, to activate it simply hold it and say ‘boots to the ground’”

Eloni looked at the device, the green glow brightening slightly, before declaring,

“Boots to the ground!”

  
  


Yellow ducked past another shurikin, the sharp blade just barely missing his cheek. His weapon was away so he could move faster, but he was getting antsy. Where had Neon J run off to? And why hadn’t he given them a new plan yet?

Once again Dramaturgy let out a loud shriek, knocking him and the rest of the team off balance. Yellow was the only one still in the sky as the rest fell to the ground.

“You- you understudies are so annoying- I’ve had it with you’re buzzing around!” The monster shrieked as she pulled out her claws yet again, preparing to charge at the fallen heroes.

But just as she made her dash, Yellow spotted something green being tossed in front of her, the monster just barely stopped in time to miss a small green explosion cutting her off from the rest of the team. A few shots from Neon J’s dart gun made her stumble back and let out a surprised shriek. As the smoke cleared a new hero landed, with curly green hair that formed a thin ring shape on his head, and the usual black uniform the others wore, Yellow couldn’t help but grin as he flew over to the group.

“Hell yeah! We got backup!” Red pumped a fist into the air as he stood up. 1010 Green looked back at them, briefly giving a smile before returning to his serious expression.

“I need to talk her down, she’s going to get upset so I need you to all to help.”

“We’re with you Green, what’s the plan?” White nodded, briefly noticing Neon J back on his factory and flying by. They all jumped out of the way as Dramaturgy screeched and lunged for them all, flying into the air, Green started giving orders.

“Red, Blue, can you make sure her ranged attacks don’t hit me? Knock them back or break them, whichever you prefer, just keep her fire off of me” 

The two androids mentioned gave a nod or a thumbs up, flying to the opposite sides of her as they readied themselves.

“White, Yellow, keep her in place best you can, we don’t want her to run away, especially not to the school.”

“Gotcha Green!” Yellow gave a thumbs up as White nodded.

And as the two ran forward to do their part, green focused his attention on the monster.

His friend.

He was going to save her. 

Flying over, but just out of range, he raised his voice,

“Kayane! I know your upset, but you can’t hurt others because of this!”

Immediately, the monsters attention was on the green Android.

“You! Shut up!” She cried as she tossed a projectile at him, but in a quick slice of red a saw blade intersected it, slicing it in half.

“You need to listen, you’re upset, and you have every reason to be. But hurting others won’t make you feel any better!”

“Be quiet! You don’t know what I feel!” She cried as she tried to charge for a slash attack, but more needle shots in front of her kept her from approaching.

“I don’t, I can’t know how you feel, but I can imagine. You put so much effort and time into your audition, and have nothing to show for it.”

“Shut up! SHUT UP!” She cried, turning to run, but White dashed in front of her way and blocked her path.

“I’ve been there before Kayane, working so hard, putting so much time and effort into something you’re passionate about, but it amounting to nothing. It’s unfair, you didn’t deserve that. And I’m sorry you got hurt.” 

“It’s unfair, it’s it’s-“ with nowhere to run she stayed in place. Looking back at the green hero, those empty black eyes finally started leaking.

“You deserved better, but just because you’re hurt doesn’t mean you can hurt others. I’m sorry that you went through that, but I promise it will get better. It’ll take a while, but it gets better.” Green looked at the monster, 

his friend,

she was crying. 

Shaking her head she fell to her knees.

“It’s not fair, it’s not, it’s not fair” she sobbed. 

Green wanted to reach out and comfort her, but a message from his internal coms gave him pause.

‘That’s it! This is our chance, Purify her now!’ Neon J messaged, but quietly got a response from White.

‘Great! How do we do that?’

Green knew what to do, acting on instinct he raised his hands

[Purify animation! Green draws a circle with one hand and with the other points a finger gun through the center]

Aiming at Dramaturgy, Green declared 

“Purity!”

And the ring fired towards her. As soon as it hit her the corruptive slime was pulled away, fizzling into nothing, leaving only Kayane behind.

Her balance unstable, she fell forward, but was quickly caught by Green. Opening her eyes, she looked up at him.

“It’s alright,” he spoke softly. “You’re safe now” The teen gave a tired hum, before passing out in the heros arms.

Green sat there while the rest of the team landed behind him, Neon J hopping off his factory as he did. He jogged over and checked Kayane’s pulse. With a sigh of relief he looked over at Green.

“She’ll be alright, but she will need to rest, put her somewhere safe for now, we’ve got something to discuss” Neon J stated while patting the green Android on the shoulder.

As Neon J led the boys to another part of the field Green carefully scooped up the still passed out Kayane, walking over to the nearby bleachers he carefully Laid her down, then went to join the group.

As soon as the green Android joined the group all of the focus was on him. Red and Yellow were at his side immediately.

“Dude! How did you do that? that was amazing!” Red grinned, eyes glinting with excitement, 

“Yeah! You were all like pew! And then the slime just melted like- YOOO!! How’d you do that? You gotta teach me!” Yellow bounced on his heels excitedly hoping for an answer. Green blinked and rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

“Uh, I’m not... sure? It just sorta clicked, you know?” He laughed nervously. Yellow blinked and stuck his tongue out.

“Dang it, thought you’d have a better explanation than the captain.”

“I’m... sorry?”

“No no it’s fine! I mean you’re on the team now so we can wait a bit on learning Purify! Right captain?” Yellow grinned over at Neon J who stated quiet. Green looked over as well, ah that’s right, this was supposed to be a one and done things. He just wanted to save his friend...

But it sounded like the rest of the team didn’t know how to use Purify

And if more people got corrupted...

“Well not exactly, Green here was recruited as a temporary member to help with this fight, so you won’t be fighting along side him again,” though J paused when he saw a contemplative look on the green androids face, maybe.

“Unless... you have something to say otherwise, Green?” J tilted his head slightly. And once again all eyes were on the green Android. He was quiet for a bit, thinking, then looked up.

“Well, if it’s alright... I’d like to stay on the team a bit longer, if you’ll have me that is” the team didn’t even hesitate to answer

“Hell yeah!”

“We’d love to have you stay dude!”

“It’d be nice to have someone else who’s sensible on the team”

“We’d be happy to have you” 

Neon J let out a laugh and clapped his hands together.

“Well that settles it then, welcome to the team 1010 Green!” 

Green looked at the group and smiled.

  
  


The next day, Eloni was sitting alone in the theatre room. It was empty of people, as it usually was during this time at lunch. Eloni usually would be hanging out with Kayane by now, but she didn’t show up for class this morning. According to her parents she was still exhausted and they didn’t want to force her to attend class, apparently the school also said they wouldn’t penalize her for any missed classes while she recovered. Eloni was glad she was okay, it was a relief to hear that, but it still felt bitter sweet to be eating alone again.

Kayane was pretty much the only friend he had at school, well at least until...

“There you are!” Haym declared as he opened the door to the theatre room, lunch box under one arm and a drink in the other. He dashed over to the stage and took a seat next to the teen, soon enough he was joined by the rest of the group, with purl and Zim joining Haym on the stage while Rin decided to stand leaning against it.

“Do you usually eat lunch in here? Because I had no idea they’d let you do that” Zimelu commented, looking around the room.

“Oh! Uh yeah, it’s technically only for members of the drama club but they’ll let anyone in as long as someone from the club vouches for them.” Eloni quickly explained, Purl nodded.

“It’s quiet in here, I like it.”

“Agreed, I’d definitely like to spend lunch here more often” Rin agreed, though quickly added “if that’s alright with you I mean! We wouldn’t want to intrude” 

“Oh no it’s fine,” Eloni reassured, smiling shyly. “I don’t mind, you guys are my friends now so... yeah”

Haym gasped happily 

“We’re Fwends?” 

“Haym stop you’re gonna scare him off” Purl lightly teased getting a laugh out of the yellow teen.

It was nice, Eloni wasn’t used to having a friend group, but he’d get used to it. 

Though everyone’s attention was drawn away when someone new entered the theatre room

Eloni looked over and immediately jumped up and ran to them.

“Kayane!” The girl looked up just in time to return the quick hug Eloni gave her. Pulling away he asked,

“Are you okay? I heard what happened, shouldn’t you be resting?” 

“I was feeling better, besides I had some time to think about everything and I’d rather speak to them as soon as I can.” She stated, crossing her arms.

“If the theatre teacher is going to do me dirty like this then I’d do better to use my time elsewhere” she huffed, Eloni blinked in confusion.

“Wait are you quitting the drama club?”

“Not really, but I did sort of plan my schedule around being in a play, I’ve got a lot of sudden free time now.” She shrugged, but with a sudden glint in her eye she grinned.

“But I’ve got the perfect plan! I’m going to start a club of my own!” She declared pointing to the sky “I’m going to call it the hero appreciation club! Where we learn about and discuss the heroes of the past and the present, like 1010 Heros!” She exclaimed, her eyes glinting with excitement.

“W-wow really? Sounds like you’ve got everything planned out then” Eloni tried to not sound as awkward as he felt. Kayane nodded.

“Yes Sir! I just need to get a teacher to overlook everything and I’m set!” She grinned, and finally noticing the rest of the group on the stage she waved over at them.

“You boys are welcome to join the club too! Anyone who wants to gush about superhero’s can join in.” She grinned, Zimelu tried to hide his snickering behind his hand as Rin answered.

“Thank you we’ll keep that in mind!” 

Looking back at Eloni, Kayane whispered with a smile,

“You didn’t tell me you had friends over!”

“Well I uh, just met them the other day” Eloni mumbled back, Kayane squeed.

“You made new friends without me? I’m so proud! You’ve gotta introduce me proper some time.” Eloni was about to respond but Kayane stepped back.

“Well I should get going on that now. I also need to check in with my teacher, nice seeing you all!” Kayane waved at the group before leaving through the other side of the theatre room. Eloni sighed with relief, Kayane was back to her usual peppy self. Returning to the stage, he sat down and was quickly elbowed lightly by Zimelu.

“Nice going Eloni, we’re not even a full team a day and we’ve already got a fan club.” He laughed while leaning back onto the stage floor.

“Wha- she didn’t say it was a fan club-“ Eloni tried to defend. 

“A hero appreciation club? Right after she’s saved by hero’s? That does sound like a thinly vailed fan club” Purl-Hew stated while adjusting his glasses. 

“Think I could get away with joining? Put in a good word for us?” Haym asked with a playful grin, earning a light shove from the blue teen next to him.

“Well I’m glad she’s in good spirits at least,” Rin laughed, finally jumping up onto the stage to sit with the group.

Eloni nodded with a smile crossing his legs to sit comfortably on the stage.

Soon enough the boys were chatting about various things over lunch, and Eloni found himself not being overwhelmed despite everything.

He became a hero, saved his best friend, and made four new ones in such a short amount of time.

He wasn’t sure what lied ahead of him but he knew he’d be okay.

He’s a superhero now after all.

[fade to black roll credits]

“Next time on 1010 Heros: the team is together and must learn to work together! Especially if they want to help out their processor, will they be able to save the space focused teacher? Find out on the next exciting episode of: 1010 Heros!”

**Author's Note:**

> Comments are appreciated, and let me know I’d there’s any spelling or grammar errors. Thank you for reading ^_^


End file.
